Fasting: miracle or monster? Health ‘Tips

Eat less – less weigh. Perhaps the best way to lose weight – completely refuse to eat?

But experts say: weight loss low calorie diet is more effective than starvation! Besides hunger persistently interferes with the activity of the body – much more so than the most potent drugs.

Those who still want to dive into the stormy sea of hunger, it is good to hear the views of not only the “lawyers” method, but his accusers.

Deciding not to resort to commercial centers, where patients starve for their own money, we found that in Moscow there is only one public clinic fasting. It was established in 1981 on the basis of hospital № 68, and officially called the Department of fasting-diet therapy. Head of department Valery Mironov told us how skillfully penetrate this mysterious door with a sign “of the product are prohibited.

Air and water – our best meal

The doctors strongly caution: the process of fasting should begin with a visit to the doctor and it is desirable – with a full medical examination. It is very important not to overstep that limit the physiological capabilities, which can occur after severe illness. This “threshold” is individual, and to correctly identify it at home is impossible.

So there is not anything you can only drink water (some prefer distilled, but experts recommend the usual boiled). Need to drink a day not less than 1.5 liters – incidentally, this may not be so easy, “the famine” water may seem very nasty. Go to bed rest no one is forced to the contrary – are offering fresh air, massage, water therapy (among them – required daily enemas).

The first 3 days (they called the “stage of alimentary excitation” speaks for itself) is usually painfully hungry, there is irritability, restless sleep, often exacerbated by previous illnesses. Then the feeling of hunger blunted, and disappears entirely, the language is covered by a thick grayish-white film, while breathing the smell of acetone – all the outward signs of acidosis (increase acidity). Peak acidosis – the so-called acidotic crisis usually occurs at the 8-day 10 and causes weakness, dizziness, nausea and sometimes vomiting. Considered – a real therapeutic effect is achieved only when this “summit” has been overcome. Abstinence from food for a period of less than 10 days is called a short fasting and respected less than the long-term (10-21 days).

In general, the duration of starvation period in the clinic are calculated individually, it depends on age, health, weight, and most importantly – from the time will come, “clinical signs of complete fasting, clearly visible only to doctors. It sounds – it’s time to feed! The patient, incidentally, can it and do not want to feel very vigorous and require the “continuation of the banquet, and this is totally unacceptable. Therefore, so dangerous for a long time to starve yourself, without the supervision of a doctor!

Group of domestic support

Frankly, the list of problems that can relieve hunger, weight gain is not the first place. In this way, mostly to treat heart and blood vessels, allergies, respiratory diseases, digestive system, spine and joints. There are still, for example, is an endocrine disease: hypothalamic obesity (manifested, but excess weight and numerous stretch marks on the skin) – that’s when it can reduce weight only starvation diets not work in practice.

Of course, hunger, people lose weight (usually lost about 10% of initial body weight). But pohudatelny effect of hunger – a very fragile thing. Once inside the person gets first tiny portions of pureed vegetables – is immediately started gaining weight. The explanation is simple – for example, the loss of part of the kilos due to the fact that fasting is actively derived sodium, which is literally “pulls” for a water from the cells. Once restarted with flow “of sodium – all returned to their seats.

To be honest hungry person can not hold the tail of the weight will be made an unpleasant surprise, but the clinic doctors believe it is quite normal – the technique, in general, is directed not to fight fat. The main task of hunger – to strengthen human adaptive mechanisms, which in ordinary life are often in a sluggish, half-asleep state. But they, these “guardians of health”, may own, without drugs to cope with many problems. Commanded by their “time” – the hypothalamus with its “fast” in the subcortex of the brain, and the order to “combat readiness”, he gives 24 hours after the cessation of serving food outside. And then – in war as in war. Some diseases are actually retreating, but looks like after this fight “the battlefield” – our body is starved?

Consider the loss

If specialist care for hunger – a rarity, then with the unpleasant consequences of this method are facing so many doctors: gastroenterologists and internists, cardiologists and psychiatrists, and even resuscitation. Of course, medical help treat those who are hungry at home, uncontrollably.

The Institute of Nutrition unsure: hunger – it’s bad! Physician gastroenterologist in the highest category Inna Pupko stresses: “It is not only harmful, but absolutely useless in terms of weight loss! Hypocaloric diet in this case will give a more reliable and stable results.

Main objective of losing weight – make the body consume its own fat. The main objective of the body – to survive, and for that he always needs to “fuel” (primarily the brain and erythrocytes) – glucose. Reserves of carbohydrates in it are not too large, they are muscle and liver glycogen (about 1% of body weight) and completely consumed within 1-2 days of fasting.

Then the body switches to “self-nourishing” and he begins to synthesize glucose, and for this he must use not only their fat and protein. Theoretically, reserves the average person weighing 75 kg is approximately as follows: 15 kg of body fat accumulation, and up to 60% of them can be lost without endangering life. Source of protein – muscle, their weight around 10-12 pounds, and consumption of 50% means death. And, incidentally, the reaction required for synthesis of glucose, a person of average weight would lose about 300 grams of muscle mass every day …

What does the hungry we promise?

Very often, “the famine” people feel unusually cheerful, energetic and efficient. Some say that in this state they “just fly. And what happens in the body during these “flights”?

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      Sharply reduced the number of vitamins (because whites were lost to them a kind of anchor), and their contents restored not earlier than after 2-3 months after the termination of starvation, and then six months later.
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      In the blood, increases the concentration of uric acid – it can trigger acute gout and kidney stones.
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      Too long uncontrolled fasting leads to a complete failure to absorb food, to mental disorders, general exhaustion – doctors call this state of nutritional marasmus.

By the way

Refusing to eat, people are actively losing weight at first, but by 7-8-th day of the basal metabolic rate decreases by 30-40% and weight loss does not exceed 100-200 grams per day.