The Diet for “Fast” Physical and Mental Health Benefits: Intermittent Fasting

You may have heard of the typical low carb or low fat diet, but have you heard of intermittent fasting? Intermittent fasting (IF) is a relatively new diet that has been recently growing in popularity because of its powerful, life-changing benefits for the body and the brain.

There are many diets out there that are complex and intimidating to follow; however, IF keeps it simple.

What is intermittent fasting and how does it work?

IF is an eating pattern where an individual cycles between periods of eating and non-eating. There are many variations of IF that contain different fasting and non-fasting timeframes. Which variation an individual should use is based on their personal preference and their lifestyle/goals. Compared to other diets that require you to limit your calories, IF requires you to cut out the entire meal itself. With IF’s unconventional dieting approach, this makes IF easy to follow for the average person. This has contributed to the diet’s rise in popularity as well as its benefits in body composition and the brain.

Why should I try this diet? What are its benefits?

There are many benefits with intermittent fasting. Below are some of the most important ones that separate this diet apart from others.

Source: The Renegade Pharmacist

 IF alters the function of cells, genes and hormones

When the body is in a fasted state, the body undergoes physiological changes such as changes in hormone levels. This allows the body to use stored fat as its main source of energy. Furthermore, insulin blood levels decrease which helps with fat burning. The human growth hormone (HGH) also gets elevated during fasting. Elevated levels of HGH further increase fat burning, muscle gain and other health benefits. As a result of decreased insulin levels and increased HGH, our cells undergo cellular repair processes and removes toxic waste from cells. This in turn can help prevent cancer. 

IF benefits the brain

Previous studies have shown that IF improves certain metabolic features that are important for mental health. This involves lowering of blood sugar levels and insulin resistance which is important in fighting against certain diseases. Fasting up-regulates the secretion of brain-derived neurotrophic factors (BDNF), a protein that is involved in cognitive functions, memory and overall brain health. A study that experimented with rats showed that IF can elevate the production of new nerve cells which positively impacts the brain. Secretion of BDNF also contributes to lower chances of mental disorders such as depression and other brain conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease. Furthermore, a study involving animals has shown that IF prevents brain damage caused by strokes.

IF can lower the risk of Type 2 Diabetes

As mentioned earlier, fasting reduces insulin. The reduction of insulin levels ultimately lowers type 2 diabetes, a lifelong disease that increases the production of insulin beyond healthy levels. A study comparing IF to calorie restriction diets showed that IF has a stronger impact on lowering insulin levels and lowering blood sugar levels in the body. Collectively, studies have shown that IF can serve as an efficient protection mechanism for people at risk of type 2 diabetes.

IF can improve heart health

Today, heart disease is the leading cause of death in both men and women. It is still not well known whether IF can improve heart health due to the limited amount of studies out there. Emerging studies on the effectiveness of IF and heart disease are slowly on the rise.

Below is a video from the Intermountain Research & Medical Foundation discussing their findings on heart disease and IF.

Source: IntermtnMedCtr/Youtube

 

Intermittent fasting comes with physical and many mental health benefits that sets this apart from other diets. Why diet focussing only on physical health when you can also improve mental health and focus on bettering your longevity?

Make a change where your future self will thank you.

– Aron Ha

Video

Stephen Hawking and the ALS disease

Dr Stephen Hawking Physics professor and author at Cambridge University

Less than a week ago, beloved cosmologist and theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, science’s brightest star, died at the age of 76 in the morning on Mar.14. His brilliance and persistence has inspired people around the world. People who are not specialist in physics may have not heard of his four laws of black hole mechanics or the Hawking radiation, but often have heard of his courageous story and lifelong battle with the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis disease (ALS).

While studying at Oxford, the young Stephen Hawking was diagnosed with ALS – a disease that causes death of neurons and gradually paralyses voluntary muscles – at the age of 21, in 1963. The doctor gave him a life expectancy of less than three years, but Stephen Hawking have defied the odds and coped with the daunting disease for over half a century. He spent 30 years as mathematics professors at the University of Cambridge, published the world-renowned The Universe in a Nutshell and A Briefer History of Time, which introduced cutting edge findings in theoretical physics to millions of readers. While Lou Gehrig and other people that suffer from ALS usually succumb in less than ten years, why has Hawking beat the odds and lived with the formidable disease?

Illustration of a normal nerve structure (left) and an ALS affected nerve cell (right)

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a highly variable disorder and can be classified a few different ways: by where the motor neuron is first affected, and by how fast the disease progresses. Hawking was an outlier, the neurons that control the diaphragm and swallowing muscle are not severely deteriorated, that means breathing muscle functions properly, malnutrition and dehydration which are often found in other cases would not be seen on Hawking.

The disorder progression also tends to be slower in people with onset at less than 40 years old, the reason behind this remains unknown. Hawking’s case is very similar to juvenile amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, which progresses very slowly and have a life expectancy of more than 30 years. And like his mind, Hawking’s illness seems to be singular. Hawking’s longevity is partly due to the excellent care that he received, and more importantly – the biology of his form of the neurodegenerative disease. Stephen Hawking’s case is a unique example of the variability of the disease, he not only gives hope to patient who also suffer from the ALS disease, but also inspires millions for his determination to fight against the odds.

Stephen Hawking’s contribution to physics and cosmology will live in the annals of science forever.

Negative effects on the brain caused by recreational marijuana

Marijuana is one of the three main forms of cannabis (a kind of drug affecting mental activity, behaviour, or perception). It is made from the cannabis plants’ leaves and dried flowers.

cannabis / image from Quick GuideUnderstanding Medical Marijuana

 In all the products of cannabis, marijuana is the least powerful. It is always smoked or even made into eatable products such as marijuana ice cream.

marijuana ice cream /image from Dr Greenlove

Therefore, some teenagers think that the marijuana can not hurt them and some of them even think that using marijuana allows them to be relaxed and settle down and improve their concentration. However, the fact is that recreational marijuana-use by youth can cause negative effects on the brain and daily performance.

 

 

 

The Risky Chemical in Marijuana

The delta-9-tetrahydro-cannabinol (THC), a main chemical in marijuana, is risky for biological systems in the brain.

The chemical formula of THC/ image from Evidence for God from Science

THC affects the cerebellum and the basal ganglia. The cerebellum is the area of the brain which controls balance and coordination. The basal ganglia are the parts of the brain which are helpful for controlling movement. These effects impact performance in some activities, such as sports and driving.

THC and the brain/ image from Collegiate Times

So the THC in marijuana can influences on the cerebellum and the basal ganglia in the brain. Even though THC can affect our brain, the bad thing is that THC percentage in marijuana experienced a dramatical increase from early 1990’s to 2013, which is from 3.73% t0 10%.

 

The Influence on Memory

In teens, the part of the brain for emotion is developed well, while the part of the brain for judgment still not mature. Smith with other researches found in 2001 that in people who use marijuana everyday for about three years, the hippocampus (a region in brain, is related to long-term memory) looked strange.

image from SlidePlayer

The greater differences in shape of the hippocampus, the poorer performance on memory assessment. In a  long-term memory test,  young adults who have never used marijuana scored 18% better compared to heavy marijuana-use youths. So if young people use marijuana, their memory would be affected negatively because of the brain chemistry and brain structure impairment.

In conclusion, recreational marijuana is harmful to the brain if youth uses it, especially when marijuana-use is high potency and long-term.

image from Depositphotos