Have you heard of it or even tried it? What is behind it from a medical perspective and how useful is intermittent fasting?
Intermittent fasting - What's it about - The most important thing to start with:
- Described as an alternative to diets and without the yo-yo effect
- Find a suitable method for yourself and your everyday life
- Overall healthier by stimulating the metabolism
Who does not know it. The beautiful season is just around the corner and you want to get rid of the winter fat. Preferably, of course, in a very comfortable way, without having to do much. Is intermittent fasting perhaps the right method?
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Healthy alternative to diet
Intermittent fasting is considered a healthy alternative to dieting.
You can get by without consciously changing your diet and get your metabolism going. The advantage of intermittent fasting is that in order to start, you don't have to find cookbooks or recipes or create shopping lists in order to only buy the right foods. It is therefore particularly suitable for people with little time and also for working people who want to lose a few kilos.
“There is no need to pay attention to the number of calories or the amount of food consumed (Editorial note: Of course, the calories consumed still have to be higher than the amount consumed, but intermittent fasting facilitates this effect). The positive effects on the body only come from sticking to the times. Those who stick to it usually feel more energetic and can sleep better. Another big advantage of this method is that there is no yo-yo effect,” says Professor Andreas Michalsen, head of the naturopathy department at the Immanuel Hospital in Berlin. “Intermittent fasting is not a miracle solution, but it brings new impetus where the classic methods fail.”
Most people lose around one and a half kilograms per month through intermittent fasting. If you also pay attention to a healthy diet during intermittent fasting and do moderate exercise twice a week, the chances of significant weight loss are even higher.
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What do doctors say?
We have Prof.Priv.Doz.Dr. Yvonne Winhofer-Stöckl from the Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism at the Medical University of Vienna was asked to give us a brief assessment of intermittent fasting. Winhofer-Stöckl says:
Intermittent fasting seems to be a simple method for weight loss. Simple, because it is also suitable for people who are overwhelmed by methods such as calorie counting. There is also evidence that intermittent fasting also has beneficial effects on risk factors for cardiovascular disease in people with metabolic syndrome (overweight, high blood pressure, high blood lipids, high risk of diabetes).
In a recently published study, not only weight, but also blood pressure and high cholesterol could be reduced and there were no side effects associated with it. The 14:10 method, i.e. eating for 10 hours and fasting for 14 hours, has proven to be the most beneficial. It is believed that the positive effects can be explained by, among other things, an improvement in the circadian rhythm, the microbiome and better sleep quality.
In order to lose weight in the long term, however, a change in diet should take place , so that primarily healthy foods and not fast food are on the table during the permitted eating intervals. Otherwise, weight gain is inevitable after the end of intermittent fasting.
2:10 p.m.? 16:8? Different types of intermittent fasting
There are basically two types of intermittent fasting: the 16:8 and the 14:10 method.
As the name suggests, this is the ratio of the hours in which you can eat and the hours in which you fast. These methods are also relatively easy to incorporate into everyday life. During the 8 or 10 hours in which you are allowed to eat, it is best to eat two large meals. You should only eat breakfast about an hour after getting up, as immediately after sleeping the melatonin level is still very high and affects carbohydrate digestion. Lunch should be the most important meal. Melatonin is then low and the brightness of the day optimizes digestion. At lunch it is advisable to eat properly and eat a sufficient and nutritious meal. You should not eat anything at least three hours before going to bed.
This way you can find the optimal routine for your own daily rhythm. We spend a large part of the fasting period sleeping anyway, and after a few days the body gets used to this change.
Intermittent fasting should be practiced consistently at least five days per week. So you can break these days for two days and have so-called “cheat days”. This is useful if, for example, you go out with friends or are invited to a party where the daily schedule cannot be easily adhered to.
The 5:2 method
Another method of intermittent fasting involves days rather than hours. Here you can eat more or less what you want five days a week. You should then fast for two days a week and only consume around 500 calories per day. These two days should not take place consecutively, but should be scheduled two or three days apart.
However, nutrition expert Michalsen recommends the 16:8 or 14:10 method because they are easier to carry out and the body can cope better with the daily eating rhythm.
Useful additions and taboos
There is no plan for prohibited foods.
The only “recipe” there is is to only eat food at the permitted time. Of course, it makes sense to eat a little healthier right away. Less meat, more vegetarian, lots of fruit, vegetables, whole grain products and fiber are advisable. In principle, everything can be eaten. However, losing weight generally works better if the food is plant-based, low in sugar and rich in vegetables. A healthy diet is the most important cornerstone of health.
Drinking is of course part of it, but not while eating. You should avoid heavily sweetened drinks. Calorie-free drinks such as water, coffee and tea without sugar are more suitable. You should stay away from light drinks as the sweeteners they contain harm the intestinal bacteria. You should also avoid fruit juices and lemonade, as these increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes and fatty liver disease. Drinking alcohol is taboo.
Alternate day fasting
Another method of intermittent fasting is this one, which alternates between strict fasting for a day and a half or 36 hours. The following day you can feast without restrictions. It is questionable whether you will enjoy it in the long term, so the probability of breaking off prematurely is very high, points out Michalsen.
Organization in harmony with the daily routine
In order for intermittent fasting to be as easy as possible and to be successful in the long term, it has to fit into your personal daily routine. So before you start, you should think about what habits you have, what processes exist within your family and your job. If you enjoy your daily breakfast with the family, you should consider whether it makes sense to get up an hour earlier so that you can enjoy it without feeling guilty. However, if you prefer to sit down at the table together in the evening and talk about the past day, you should adapt your interval planning accordingly. The easier it is to integrate the intervals into your everyday life without major changes, the easier it is to implement and stick to.
What happens during intermittent fasting?
Every person has around twelve hours of sugar storage in their liver. Only when this is emptied does the body use its fat reserves and thus start “autophagy”. This plays a major role in health and acts as the body's own waste disposal system. The cells cleanse and detoxify themselves, but the body needs rest to do this. During interval fasting, autophagy starts after around twelve hours, which logically results in the duration of the fasting units.
Professor Michalsen also has a tip for this: “If you exercise in the last two hours of your meal break, you empty the sugar stores in your liver more quickly and start your body’s fasting program earlier. Then the fasting effect can be present after just 12 or 13 hours.”
Regular fasting could potentially even extend life. There is already plenty of evidence for this in animal experiments. The possible anti-aging effect on people is being scientifically investigated by more and more researchers. The reason for the possible life-extending effect of intermittent fasting is autophagy. Over the years, waste builds up in every cell and has to be broken down. If the metabolic processes do not function properly, illnesses can arise.
Professor Frank Madeo from the Institute of Molecular Biosciences at the Karl Franzens University of Graz in Austria also recommends skipping breakfast every now and then and only drinking black, unsweetened coffee instead. This triggers the cell cleaning process. Nuts, wheat germ, soybeans, mushrooms or citrus fruits, apples and pears are also particularly beneficial.
Health aspects of intermittent fasting
Intermittent fasting changes the metabolic processes in the body, making it particularly effective for some illnesses and health problems and can even help with back pain or sleep problems. Reduced performance, obesity, diabetes, asthma, digestive disorders, food intolerances or headaches – metabolism plays an important role in the development of all of these diseases.
It sounds so simple to implement intermittent fasting. But for many people, this doesn't work for reasons such as lack of time or excessive stress. Many people “snack” their way through the day and no longer pay attention to their natural feeling of hunger and satiety. People like to quickly grab small snacks and drink fruit juices or lemonades. Shortly afterwards, the body becomes hypoglycemic again and triggers cravings. Over time, you gain weight and the cells' self-cleaning program is negatively affected. That's why it's best to find your optimal interval method, pay attention to your body's signals and learn to feel again when you're really hungry.
Advantage over diets
When you lose weight through diets, your body goes into low gear. Many people then experience a feeling of fatigue or lack of energy, which often manifests itself in headaches, tiredness or weakened concentration. The body goes into energy saving mode and the yo-yo effect threatens.
Can everyone do intermittent fasting?
Intermittent fasting is very suitable for healthy adults who want to lose a few kilos. However, if you take medication regularly, you should consult your family doctor to see whether intermittent fasting may influence its effect. A doctor must also be consulted if you are severely overweight or underweight, have cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus or cancer. The health benefits are also not available for pregnant women, breastfeeding women and children. Intermittent fasting is also not recommended for shift workers or people with a very physically demanding job.
Under certain circumstances, any type of weight loss that is not accompanied by a doctor can lead to an eating disorder. People who have already suffered from an eating disorder such as anorexia may be at higher risk of falling back into the vicious cycle of starvation. Nutrition experts therefore strongly advise against intermittent fasting if you have an unstable mental state or eating disorder.
If you want to lose too much weight too quickly, you are often gambling with your health. In order to lose weight healthily in the long term, the body needs enough vegetables, vitamins and minerals. Unbalanced nutrition and radical diets are more likely to cause damage to the body and can even attack internal organs.
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Source: rp-online.de , as well as Prof.Priv.Doz.Dr.
Yvonne Winhofer-Stöckl Article image: Oleksandra Naumenko / Shutterstock
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