Intermittent fasting: why people choose this type of diet for weight loss

Since a while, many people have chosen to follow the intermittent fasting diet. But how does it work? Is it really effective?

This scheme supports that eating for a short time and fasting 16-18 hours a day may trigger a metabolic change energy that promotes weight loss. Some studies also refer to improving cellular health and blood sugar levels.

But stay we do not have meta-analyzes or systematic reviews which are the best quality research studies.

Are you losing weight? Of course! If too many calories are limited, we all lose weight, regardless of the diet. But what we have to ask ourselves is: Is it risky? Do you propose to improve our diet? And is it sustainable in the long run?

Many celebrities take this diet to lose those extra pounds. In an interview, Jennifer aniston she joins the growing list of celebrities who claim to be fans of intermittent fasting. According to the 50-year-old actress, has had great success with the eating plan, which requires fasting 16 hours a day and eating only eight hours. “I do intermittent fasting so I don’t eat in the morning -He told British media Radio Times. I noticed a big difference when I don’t eat solid food for 16 hours“.

A study tested this simpler modality to adapt to the life of a worker. “We observed a 3% reduction in weight and 4% reduction in abdominal fat“Dr. Pam Taub, cardiologist at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine, told NPR. For example, if someone is having breakfast at 8 a.m., you shouldn’t eat anything else after 6 p.m. If you like to dine later, you may need to delay breakfast. The only important thing is to respect that meals are made within these 10 hours, and the remaining 14 hours the body does not enter a calorie. The only thing allowed – and, in fact, advised – it is water, to maintain good hydration.

Clearly, By coming up with a different pattern than what we are used to, the first thing people show are bouts of hunger and irritability with emotional and behavioral impact. This happens because when they restrict food a lot, it is difficult to maintain it over time without generating the opposite effect: greater lack of control, disinhibition of impulses and negative emotions. And in some people, there is a risk of developing an eating disorder.

Remember that Obesity is a disease that cannot be “cured by just closing your mouth”. It’s much more complex than that and you need comprehensive treatment which includes nutritional education, physical activity, manage emotions and also contemplate the pleasure that makes us appreciate the foods we love the most. It is not about suffering and starving. Hunger is a serious social problem, not a therapeutic measure for weight loss.

My recommendation is that don’t start a certain diet because your neighbor told you it worked for her or a friend managed to lose 15 pounds somehow. Because each person is different and needs specific and personal indications when dealing with the problem of overweight.

Take care of yourself, do your research, consult specialized professionals and remember that food has a direct impact on your health.

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