Benefits of Fasting

The holiday season is over and how many of us did not put on a few pounds? I find that most of my patients do not want to give up the foods they love, even if these foods are not so good for them. Fasting can help you take off a few holiday pounds while letting you eat like you want to (within reason) the remainder of the time. And fasting has pretty much been established through many studies to be extremely good for us. And since I recommend that you try it and add it to your health regimen, I want to give you some of the more well know benefits. Here are some of my favorites with a brief explanation:

1. Reduces insulin sensitivity. Insulin sensitivity is a measure of how responsive your cells are to insulin. Improving it can reduce your chances of getting several diseases including diabetes. 
2. Raises growth hormone levels (hGH). This is basically the anti-aging hormone. Yes, this can make you age more slowly.  
3. Helps you lose weight. It effectively does this by reducing overall calories and also by teaching your body to burn fat again.
4. May increase your life span. Many studies on rats show that rats that fast live much longer and are healthier in general.
5. Reduces inflammation. Reducing this one thing in your body can reduce your chances of getting a whole host of chronic illnesses as well as pain.
6. Improve brain function and help prevent neurodegenerative diseases. Everyone is looking for a cure for Alzheimer's and this might be the best, or one of the best preventatives. 
7. Improve heart health. It does this by reducing blood pressure, triglycerides, cholesterol. 

​Sounds pretty good to me.   
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