The phrase “intermittent fasting” (IF) refers to an eating pattern in which periods of fasting are combined with periods of normal eating. Many people believe that fasting for a set amount of time each day or eating only one meal a few days a week can have health benefits. According to Johns Hopkins (2023), 25 years of intermittent fasting is enough time for the human body to adapt to long periods without food. Humans evolved to go weeks or months without food as hunters and gatherers in the Stone Age and earlier before they invented agriculture. The paper will present evidence to show that IF is not as beneficial as often believed when it comes to weight loss.
Physiologically, cutting calories in animals has been shown to increase longevity and improve resistance to a variety of endocrine disorders. According to Harvard (2022), the use of intermittent fasting for weight loss is successful, with participants losing an average of 7-7. 11 lbs in 10 weeks. The study comprised sample sizes ranging from 4 to 334 participants, and follow-up periods ranged from 2 to 23 months for obese people to find the differences in research design and methods (Harvard, 2022). Half of the studies looked only at the intermittently fasted group, while the other half were randomized control trials as opposed to the fasted group.
The same research group, which followed 100 obese people for a year, found no evidence that intermittent fasting was more beneficial than daily calorie restriction (Harvard, 2022). Subjects were assigned to alternate daily fasting (one meal per day at 25% of baseline calories compared to 125% of baseline line calories reduced from three meals) or 6-month weight loss reduced half of daily calorie restriction (Harvard), 2022). After 6 months, both groups increased their calorie intake by 25% to maintain their current body weight (Harvard, 2022). That meant that most of them were susceptible to life-threatening diseases.
Ganesan et al. (2018) conducted a study to determine whether ADF is an effective counterpart to dietary restriction in non-metabolic adults and if it enhances longevity. Sixteen subjects, 8 males and 8 females, were prescribed to fast for consecutive days for a total of 22 days. Approximately 2.5% of initial body weight and 4% of baseline adiposity were lost by individuals ( Ganesan et al., 2018). On days when respondents were not fasting, despite an increase in cholesterol greater than or equal to 15 grams and no decrease in their hunger, they indicated that if they ate one small meal on fasting days can gradually helped to make fasting more manageable. There were no significant differences in resting metabolic rate or respiratory fraction from day 1 to day 22 of ADF (Ganesan et al., 2018). Fasting insulin decreased by 57% (P 0.001), but ghrelin and glucose levels did not change significantly from baseline in participants with additional fasting. They call him Ganesan. (2018) found that of the 14 participants, 7 were inactive, 3 were moderately active, and 3 were very active (exercising 4–5 times per week).
Despite low-level adverse effects of short-term IF, such as persistent hunger, irritability, and decreased mood, these feelings failed to disappear within one month at the end of the fasting period (Aoun et al.). , 2020). The same study did not rule out serious side effects, because the authors did not provide advice for IF for pregnant or breastfeeding women, children or growing adolescents, or anyone with it at risk of developing an eating disorder. The potential success of the diet and maintenance of benefits, including weight loss or biomarker improvement, depends largely on how well it is tolerated. According to their meta-analysis, excessive IF dropped ranging from 2% to 38%, while the dropout rate for CER meals was 0%. from 50%. As a result, it showed that IF resulted in a decrease in total body fat stores, preservation of free fatty acids (FFM), and maintenance of resting energy expenditure (REE) (Aoun et al.). , 2020). The authors concluded that during the first phase of starvation, REE increased by five percent in obese and non-obese patients due to energy expenditure in recycled fat, glucose storage, and increased gluconeogenesis (Aoun et al., 2020). FFM and REE changes depend on the amount of exercise, and possibly protein intake as well, in addition to nutrition. Subjects with excess body fat lost a few pounds from their initial body mass (FFM) during intermittent fasting when daily protein intake was high (ranging from 1.1-1.2 g/kg) (Aoun et al ., 2020).
In conclusion, a critical review of the literature on intermittent fasting shows conflicting results regarding its effectiveness, although intermittent fasting has been shown periodic and other calorie restrictions for increased popularity for improving metabolism and extending longevity further in animal tests It’s complicated. The study also found that non-obese people who fasted daily lost slightly more weight and fat but still felt hungry on non-fasting days and there was a big difference in dropout rates on testing between species in which intermittent fasting was used.
References
Aoun, A., Ghanem, C., Hamod, N., & Sawaya, S. (2020). The safety and efficacy of intermittent fasting for weight loss. Nutrition Today, 55(6), 270-277. https://doi.org/10.1097/nt.0000000000000443
Ganesan, K., Habboush, Y., & Sultan, S. (2018). Intermittent fasting: The choice for a healthier lifestyle. Cureus, 10(7). https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.2947
Harvard. (2022, May 17). Diet review: Intermittent fasting for weight loss. The Nutrition Source. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/healthy-weight/diet-reviews/intermittent-fasting/
John Hopkins. (2023, September 29). Intermittent fasting: What is it, and how does it work? Johns Hopkins Medicine, based in Baltimore, Maryland. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/intermittent-fasting-what-is-it-and-how-does-it-work
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