ALL ABOUT WATER FASTING
Now that we’re in the heart of spring, this is a perfect time to tune in on lightening up our load; whether that be with food, our minds, hearts, etc. With the abundance of sunshine we are having lately, I also find it a perfect time for fasting. In Ayurveda, the strength of our digestive fire is called agni. If it is in balance, we are happy and healthy. If we are imbalanced, this can lead to all kinds of issues. And so, one of the ways to reset this agni is by giving our digestion some well-needed rest.
Have you ever gone a day without eating? I admit I find not resting my digestion so incredibly helpful. As someone who used to struggle with constant digestive issues, just letting my digestion rest has done wonders for my gut health. After intermittent fasting for over quite a few years now, I decided to plunge right into a three-day water fast this past week. Now, this was something I had been wanting to do for AGES but I never could find the right time. As of late, I had been inserting 24-hour water fasts a couple of times a month, where I’d have my last meal at 5 pm and then have dinner at that time the next day.
Over the past couple of years or so, I have been following the research of Dr. Valter Longo who runs the USC Longevity Institute as well as being a faculty member of the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. …...Dr. Valter Longo for a number of years now so was familiar with my research and in fact it was his study back in 2014 that prompted my interest in the three-day fast. The major finding of the study was that when fasting for 72 hours, older and damaged immune cells are killed off, while new ones are generated. ‘“And the good news is that the body got rid of the parts of the system that might be damaged or old, the inefficient parts, during the fasting. Now, if you start with a system heavily damaged by chemotherapy or aging, fasting cycles can generate, literally, a new immune system” he says.
There are other numerous benefits as well:
BLOOD SUGAR - Studies show that fasting can help with lowering blood sugar and also with insulin resistance. This helps the body to transport glucose from your bloodstream to your cells much easier. The study shows that ‘insulin resistance and glucose uptake decreased by 60%’ during fasting’. And so, this potentially has profound significance when it comes to diabetes, and even when it comes to cancer —-for as the Warburg effect shows - high sugar levels feed cancer.
LOWERS INFLAMMATION - Chronic inflammation can be linked to disease. With inflammation, immune cells called monocytes are created, which can cause serious tissue damage. When we fast, however, these cells go to ‘sleep’ and become less inflammatory than monocytes found in those who were fed. This study discusses how with prolonged fasting, inflammatory markers like C reactive protein decrease.
BOOSTS CHEMO - Fasting actually protects healthy cells against the toxicity of chemotherapy, while allowing chemo to work on cancer cells. Scientists have found that ‘periodic fasting or FMDs consistently show powerful anticancer effects in mouse cancer models including the ability to potentiate chemoradiotherapy and TKIs and to trigger anticancer immunity.’
CANCER - TUMOR REGRESSION To further the efficacy of Dr Longo’s research, his team also demonstrated that a 48-hour fast in mice slowed the growth and spread of five out of the eight cancers studied.
HEART HEALTH - Fasting has been studied to help lower blood pressure and cholesterol. One study with obese individuals showed that fasting for three weeks under medical supervision significantly decreased blood pressure, as well as levels of ‘bad’ cholesterol.
ACTIVATES AUTOPHAGY - Autophagy, is the mechanism by which the old cells break down. This process of autophagy helps maintain normal functioning (homeostasis) in the cell and it can help the immune system by cleaning up toxins. It is our body’s number 1’s anti-ageing mechanism.
LOWERS RISK FACTORS FOR DISEASE - Brief cycles of periodic fasting have a range of beneficial effects on risk factors for cancer, diabetes, heart disease, etc. in mice and humans. A 2017 study talked about how individuals who were on a ‘fasting mimicking diet ‘reduced body weight and body fat, lowered blood pressure, and decreased the hormone IGF-1, which has been implicated in aging and disease.
MY EXPERIENCE
In terms of my experience with the 3 day water fast, I didn’t plan it. I knew I wanted to do a cleanse this spring, but hadn’t planned it previously. I just dived right in. This is something I would probably advise against, as I would have liked to have coincided it with a bowel cleanse, either a colonic or a detox programme. That said, overall my experience went pretty smoothly.
Here’s a play by-play with how it went.
MONDAY
I decided I was going to fast that day, so after eating an early dinner at 5:30 pm, Monday evening I didn’t eat again until 2 pm Thursday. That evening I felt great.
TUESDAY
I would have to say this was my favourite day of the fast. I was literally buzzing! My thoughts were clear and my energy was off the charts. I got so much done and had no hunger. I drank two liters of water.
WEDNESDAY
I didn’t feel quite right. I was a bit anxious and fatigued, and unfocused. Drank water but looking back, probably not enough.
THURSDAY
I was a bit ‘out of it’ so to speak. I also started getting neuropathy and didn’t feel like my supplemental calcium that I have to take daily due to having hypocalcemia (a side effect from having my thyroid taken out) was being absorbed properly. I stopped the fast, 3 hours early to have a green juice, followed by a nourishing protein berry smoothie. The green juice, with pure liquid nutrition, was just what I needed!
CHALLENGES
In terms of challenges, I had my own unique ones having to do with taking calcium supplements. Because calcium seems to bind easier with food, I was suffering symptoms of hypocalcemia or low calcium, my final day which led me to break the fast early.
WHY HYDRATION IS KEY
Other challenges were not hydrating enough. It’s absolutely essential to remember to hydrate on water fast. This is important for several reasons: to help you eliminate toxins from lungs, skin, colon, to help regulate hormones and to help to transport nutrients to cells. As over 2/3s of the human body is water, it is absolutely essential. It is also essential for transporting nutrients and oxygen to the body’s cells and helps to cleanse the bladder, help with digestion, ensure that the blood pressure of the body is moderate, and stabilizes the heartbeat. Water has also been found useful in protecting organs and tissues, regulating the body temperature, and maintaining the sodium balance in your body.
As the folks over at Zero discuss, ‘Early in a fast, as you burn through glycogen, you’ll actually release water into your bloodstream. But after your glycogen stores are depleted, deeper into your fast, your body won’t have those stores of carbs and water to fall back on, so extra hydration becomes increasingly important.’ Also, you are losing minerals like calcium and magnesium.
This is why supplementing with water and a bit of pink Himalayan salt could help replenish any loss minerals.
Secondly, you could have digestive disorders like diarrhea.
Thirdly detox symptoms like headaches, nausea, fatigue, etc. are quite common. I had fatigue and a bit of trouble focusing on Wed but otherwise felt OK.
Overall, I really enjoyed my fasting experience. I also noticed afterward that I look at food differently, in the sense that I’m much more careful about what I put in my body and eat smaller portions. Next time, however, I would plan colonics during my fast to help the bowel flush toxins. I am segueing into liquid detoxification next, which I’ll correlate with my sauna detoxification and binders. I didn’t do saunas during this fast because of risk of dehydration.
I believe I will continue to do 24-hour water fasting/OMAD a couple of times a month and then will incorporate 3-day fasts every 6 months. THE KEY LESSON LEARNED IS THAT HYDRATION IS 1000% ESSENTIAL.
Have you tried water fasting? What has been your experience?
DISCLAIMER
I am not a doctor and am not trying to diagnose, treat or cure any disease or illness. If you decide to embark on a water-only fast, please do consult your doctor first. Likewise, if you are underweight or have underlying health conditions, please do make a point to check in with your health care professional.