Exact time to fast that could result in huge health benefits for your heart
Brits are being told when it is best to fast and for how long to lose weight to reduce the risk of heart disease.
More than half of adults in the UK are overweight, according to Cancer Research UK and it can lead to a variety of medical conditions. While one in four adults are also described as obese or very overweight.
Obesity can lead to type 2 diabetes, heart disease, cancers, strokes and other illnesses. The NHS states: “Obesity is generally caused by consuming more calories – particularly those in fatty and sugary foods – than you burn off through physical activity. The excess energy is stored by the body as fat.”
Scientists believe a good way to lose weight is through intermittent fasting and this can also lead to other health benefits from having less food in your stomach and giving the digestive system a break.
Fasting can clearly involve different lengths of times but, Dr Adam Collins, Principal Teaching Fellow in Nutrition, at the University of Surrey believes that giving a break of 12 hours between meals regularly improves metabolism and health.
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The period of time could be extended up to even 16 hours while there are other forms of intermittent fasting like the popular 5:2 approach where you eat normally for five days a week and then restrict yourself to around 500 or 600 calories on the other two days. And Dr Collins advises that the key is to “consistently” carry out whichever dieting plan.
There is no set regime that will fit everyone and factors that need to be taken into consideration include how much activity you are doing during the day. Scientists are also now looking more into people’ circadian rhythm, or there natural daily cycle of sleep and activity so as to consider when it is best to eat and that having a meal before bed is not optimal for good health.
Dr Collins told the BBC that fasting allows for “housekeeping” and usually kicks in after around 12 hours. When the body has a depleted level of glucose it will then start to break down fat into fuel. And on top of this scientists are suggesting that chemicals are also released during fasting which benefit gut bacteria.
Dr Collins says that people tend to be a constantly full fed state. “All the things we associate with poor metabolic health and disease risk – cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance, diabetes and low energy – are essentially a manifestation of fuel mismanagement”, he says. “Eating in a grazing pattern means you’re not able to store, liberate and utilise fuel in the right way.”
While Prof Tim Spector of King’s College London states that there is evidence to suggest microbes feed off carbohydrates in the gut lining during fasting and make it more healthy as a result.
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