Whoever intercedes regularly for a long meal breaks, lives healthier and longer, many people believe. In fact, the hour fasting in worms, mice and monkeys had a stunning effect. On average, they lived between 15 to 50 percent longer than animals that were able to cram throughout the day to the full. Transmitted to humans it would mean that the fasting could extend the life of a good 140 years.
No wonder, then, that interval is fasting so popular. In a representative survey commissioned by the DAK were fasting more than 70 percent of the respondents imagine.
But there are two problems: to fast to be able to imagine, is something different than it actually hold out. In addition, the human organism is much more complex than worms. Self-study results of monkeys can not be one-to-one transfer.
“Amazing how well the volunteers have held”
Researchers around the world have been trying for years, the positive interval fasting-effect in humans to prove. The most recent study is now published in the journal “Cell Metabolism”. For the study, the researchers to Frank Madeo from the Institute for Molecular Biosciences in Graz have investigated about 100 volunteers. All participants were of normal weight and healthy.
Half of them fasted for more than six months after the Alternate-day-fasting-principle. This means you have fasted for a day and a day of normal eating. Because they had taken in the night between the fasting and Non – fasting day, so meal breaks of up to 36 hours.
The other 50 subjects ate first, as usual. Then, the researchers chose randomly 25 of them were about four weeks on the fast program. Thus, they were able to investigate the short-term and long-term effects of the Diet. Cheat, the subjects were not able to, Sensors on their skin controlled your sugar level. During the study, the scientists collected thousands of data from the blood pressure on insulin values to the bone density measurement.
The result: after four weeks of such a interval of fasting positive effects were on the health.
- The amount of visceral fat, the organs surrounds, a decrease in fasting subjects. This fat is considered particularly dangerous, because it constantly emits messengers to the body, as well as the sugar metabolism and the blood pressure may increase. (Read more about it here.)
- By means of the fat reduction of the content of ketones, which brighten according to studies, the mood and inflammation can inhibit increased even on Non-fasting days.
- Similarly, the amount of certain proteins, which are suspected to accelerate the aging process was reduced.
- The cholesterol level also decreased and thus also the risk for heart attacks and strokes.
- During the four weeks of lent, the subjects reduced their calorie intake by about a third and lost 3.5 kg. Interesting: Also the Not-nearly ate approximately ten percent less and took at least 200 grams. The reason for this is unclear, perhaps alone of the participation in the study had influenced her eating habits.
- Even after six months of fasting had no negative effect. In previous studies, the lasting calories caused a reduction in the bone density in the long term to shrink, and the experimental participants were more prone to infections. However, these side effects usually occurred only after a year.
“I was surprised that the subjects eat this quite a hard Regime with a day and a day of fasting surprisingly have held up well,” says biochemist Madeo the MIRROR. He was also amazed that four weeks was sufficient to bring the belly fat to melt, and that the heart functions in healthy and normal weight people had improved.
But what makes the food waiver so healthy? Researchers suggest that fasting triggers a kind of makeover in the body. Through the meal breaks, the metabolism of the cells changes accordingly: Because they get no food delivered, find other sources of energy, and decompose their own, injured reserves. The process is also referred to as Autophagy. For the study of the system of the Japanese Joshinori Ohsumi 2016 got the Nobel prize for medicine. (Read more about it here.)
At the same time the withdrawal of the metabolism of the body changes the food. Who eats constantly, drives high insulin levels permanently and get faster Hunger.
Also studies in mice suggest that not only the amount of food decides about Obesity. Mice that had all-day access to feed, were increased within 100 days of thick, your blood sugar level, your liver was damaged. A second group got only about eight hours of the day to Eat. Although they had taken on average as many calories, they remained slim and weighed 28 percent less than animals of the comparison group.
Interval fasting is the answer in the fight against diseases of civilization? To answer this question, it is still too early, researchers agree. The current study doesn’t change anything.
Because with only 100 participants overall, the study is not representative. Moreover, it is not clear whether the positive effects really go on fasting or the calorie reduction. “In addition, a control group would have been required, which is achieved with a different Form of fasting a similar extent of reduction in energy consumption, as the group with the alternating fast,” says Jürgen König, head of the Department of nutritional Sciences at the University of Vienna, who was not involved in the study.
Is fasting better than other diets?
So, the question remains open, fast whether it really is better or whether it is sufficient to eat less. Moreover, it is questionable how long the positive effect of fasting makes a lasting impression. In a study from the USA with Obese subjects were unable to resist the Diet permanently, and then again. Also, previous studies showed no benefits of interval fasting, compared to other diet methods, which led to a comparable reduction in calorie intake.
Also Madeo emphasized, that the individual almost methods are still too little explored, to assess which one is the best. “We know much too little about the individual consequences of fasting,” says the biochemist. “To Overweight fasting different than Slim? Young differently than Old? Women are different than men? Also, we do not know the long-term consequences: What happens after 10, 20 years?”
The biochemist is convinced of the positive effect of fasting, however, so that he thinks of himself and on his private Facebook page nutrition tips: “I have a Spartan Breakfast in the Form of coffee with almond milk and a handful of nuts”, Madeo. After this he’ll eat again around 17 or 18 PM. From 20 o’clock he was fast again. If he had an invitation to dinner, break this rule sometimes, so Madeo: “I’m not dogmatic.”
Summary: studies in animals show a positive effect of the interval fasting. The results were so far however not sure when you people demonstrate. The hours of food by the waiver, while disquieting visceral fat to melt, and lowered blood sugar levels and blood pressure. Still is not clear, however, whether the fasting-it looks much better than other diet methods that lead to reduced caloric intake.