Fasting therapy is an established therapeutic approach within the clinical departments for alternative and integrative medicine. It has proven beneficial effects on patients suffering from chronic diseases, especially rheumatic diseases. Observational and clinical data as well as the research-based evidence of caloric restriction and fasting have indicated the clinical benefits of the practice on hypertension, metabolic diseases, inflammatory diseases, pain syndromes, psychosomatic disorders, and atopic diseases. Fasting is also becoming a cornerstone of preventive care, one of the main areas of focus in the national effort to tackle the surge of non-communicable diseases. Non-communicable diseases are currently responsible for over 61 percent of deaths in our country.
The ideal way
Fasting is the practice of abstaining from solid foods and stimulants such as nicotine and caffeine for a fixed time period. When practised properly, you will experience vitality and reduced cravings. While fasting, you typically drink fresh fruit juices, lime juice, honey, and vegetable soups etc leading to a maximum of 300 Kcal a day. The process stimulates your excretory systems, including the liver, kidneys, intestines, skin, and lungs. You also need to maintain a proper balance between rest and exercise.
To adopt a successful and healthy lifestyle after the fast, you need to mindfully reintroduce intake of solid foods. The body has the ability to toggle from exogenous supplies to endogenous reserves. However, the process also has metabolic, cardiovascular and psychological effects that must be monitored thoroughly. Water fasting and other modified regimens display certain differences, although they all entail limiting or restricting the intake of food for a specified time period. The terms are often used interchangeably, and fasting is also used to describe weight loss regimens like low-calorie diets of 800 Kcal a day. Let us take a look at three of the most commonly practised techniques of fasting.
Water fasting: According to a study published in the Lancet, water fasting has proven to be an effective treatment for rheumatoid arthritis. However, in the instances of comorbidity, it is not advised to observe water fasting without medical supervision. If you have never tried water fasting before, prepare yourself by gradually reducing the food intake for four days prior to the fast. The fast lasts anywhere between 24 and 72 hours. During this period, you are only allowed to drink water. Break the fast with small meals and gradually increase your food intake once you feel comfortable.
Therapeutic fasting: This is a supervised and inpatient fasting regimen that is used for prevention or therapy. Patients are prescribed a diet that consists of consuming 250 ml of vegetable broth, 250 ml of vegetable juice, 30 gm of honey and 2 litre of fluid intake in the form of water and herbal teas. For extended fasting periods, buttermilk is added to the diet. Apart from the physical aspect, there are psychosocial benefits, which are mediated by the group dynamics as a result of people fasting together.
Intermittent fasting: The abundance of research on the benefits of caloric restriction, has established protocols of intermittent or alternate fasting into medical practice as well as clinical research. Alternate fasting or a fixed combination schedule, which entails alternating between eating days when the subject is made to consume food as desired and fasting days when the intake of food is withheld or restricted. This variant can be practised on a regular basis. It reduces the risk of diabetes and heart disease and had potentially beneficial effects on cancer treatment, although we need more research to establish it conclusively.
Fasting, by its very nature, is interdisciplinary because it has an effect on physiologic regulatory and metabolic and organ systems, not to mention the psychological state of the subject. However, active collaboration has proven to produce a better response. The experience of your doctor also plays a decisive role. For best results, practice it under the guidance of a licensed naturopath.
The author is assistant CMO, Jindal Naturecure Institute