Intermittent Fasting Can Help Regenerate Our Immune System
The types and quality of food we eat influences more than how much we weigh. Food has an effect on metabolism, insulin production, leptin release and many other hormonal and chemical balances.
Scientists are also examining the way fasting affects cellular and mitochondrial function, and longevity.
They have found the cells in our body react to fasting in much the same way as they do to exercise. In other words, when placed under stress, be it exercise or fasting the reaction creates changes at the cellular level that helps extend your lifespan.
Fasting shifts the body from using glucose as its primary fuel to fat, and being an efficient fat-burner benefits your health beyond weight loss
In adults, the undifferentiated stem cells found in tissues and organs are used by the body to renew itself. The primary role of these cells is to maintain and repair the tissues where they are found.
Another effect of fasting is autophagy.
When this vital process occurs in the mitochondria it is called mitophagy. This is when your body begins to eat itself in an orderly pattern to remove damage parts from your body.
Although it sounds like something we might want to avoid, this process is healthy and helps your body to “clean house.”
According to Colin Champ, MS and certified radiation oncologist at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center:
“Think of it as our body’s innate recycling program. Autophagy makes us more efficient machines to get rid of faulty parts, stop cancerous growths, and stop metabolic dysfunction like obesity and diabetes.”
Mitophagy happens at the cellular level where the membranes break down and your body recycles what is healthy and uses the rest for energy, or to make new parts. This process may also play a role in controlling the amount of inflammation in our bodies.
When scientists engineered rats incapable of autophagy they grew up sleepier, fatter, with higher cholesterol levels and impaired brains.
There are 3 ways to elevate the body’s ability to destroy worn out cells and regenerate new ones.
The 1st is exercise, which puts stress on your body, tears down muscle, and helps the body to rebuild new tissue.
2nd is intermittent fasting, some studies even suggest intermittent fasting can improve cognitive function, brain structure, and help you to learn more easily. These studies were completed on rats and it was not totally clear if the benefits resulted specifically from autophagy.
3rd is a high fat diet consisting mainly of high quality healthy fats with a moderate amount of high quality protein and minimal non- fiber carbohydrates. The idea is to reduce your carbohydrate intake to a level that the body has no other choice but to burn fat for fuel.
Research demonstrates this diet will help your body fight cancer, lower your risk of diabetes, fight some brain disorders.
Keep in mind that monitoring is protein intake is just as important as cutting non-vegetable carbs. If we eat more protein than what your body needs, we will prevent the activation of pathways associated with stem cell and immune system regeneration. This includes the mTOR, PKA, and IGF pathways.
Intermittent fasting is healthy for most people.
But, if one suffers from diabetes, hypoglycemia, chronic adrenal stress, or cortisol dysregulation, then specific precautions must be taken and working with a physician and dietitian to ensure healthy balance of nutrition and fasting.
Pregnant and nursing mothers should not fast as their babies need the nutrition to grow and develop appropriately.
Adding this type of fasting to our health regimen may be challenging but the rewards are significant.
It begins by using a fasting schedule that can be maintained. Do not get discouraged if you eat more on your fasting days than you had planned. Drink plenty of water and tea to help feel full and satisfied during the day.
In short, intermittent fasting improves the immune system and mitochondrial function, reduces inflammatory process and the amount of free radicals in the body. It helps to slow down the aging process.
So, going without food now and then will not kill us, on the contrary, it may be one of the Keys to living a longer and healthier life.
Eat healthy, Be healthy, Live lively.
HeffX-LTN
Paul Ebeling
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