When you hear the word ‘fasting’, what flashes in your mind’s eye? Well! For many, it may be seen as a feeling of fear wrapped in spiritual beliefs or maybe it may be seen as a tool to lose weight quickly and one associate it with dietary restrictions. But the knowledge of its amazing benefits on our health is certain to eradicate all such false notions from one’s mind and adopt it as a means to tone our physique in the right direction. Come on readers let us try to unfold some of the many benefits of fasting to reap its optimal benefits.
Boosts brain function:
Well! Fasting has many positive effects on the brain, the most important organ of the body. Let us see how! A protein called brain-derived neurotrophic factor(BDNF), which is highly helpful in the development of healthier neurons, and in the increased communication between the neurological cells, is stimulated immensely by fasting thus lowering the risk of diseases like Alzheimer’s ,Dementia, depression etc. In general, one may experience increased mental clarity which is the need of the hour.
Cleanses blood and helps in anti-ageing:
Ageing is a part of nature and one cannot deny it! It is amazing to note that fasting slows down the ageing process by increasing the stimulation of HSH (human growth hormone), a hormone that is closely connected to the ageing process. Amazing isn’t it! Also it helps to detoxify blood by increasing the elimination of toxins as the process of digestion is given a rest for a specified period of time.
Fasting helps to prevent type-2 diabetes and various heart diseases:
Believe it or not, fasting may lead to high insulin sensitivity, that is, small amounts of insulin to lower blood glucose levels thus lowering the risk of type-2 diabetes. Fasting also helps in lowering the levels of bad cholesterol and not affecting the levels of good cholesterol thus preventing various heart diseases.
Fasting may regulate hunger patterns:
Some people really do not know when they are really hungry and may keep munching away. Fasting may come to the rescue by regulating the ghrelin hormone which is an indicator of when one’s body really requires fuel that is food. Thus the hunger patterns may fall into place because of fasting.
Fasting helps to have clear skin:
While fasting, the digestion process, which consumes the maximum amount of energy, is put to rest thus helping the body to concentrate on other processes like repairing dead or damaged tissues, cleansing blood etc., which may have direct effect on the skin and may improve its texture.
The other benefits of fasting may include losing weight, empowering the immune system, boosts metabolism and the list may go on.
A word of caution:
If fasting is not practiced in the right way it might turn out to be very risky. Thus learning the right techniques in the right way is truly a must! Also, not all people can practice fasting. It is a strict no-no for pregnant and breast feeding women as it may have negative impacts on the baby.
So readers! Fasting is not a practice to be feared after all and in fact after having gained the knowledge of its many benefits let us try to put it into practice in the right way to gain its optimal benefits!
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