Life In Self Quarantine – Intermittent Fasting For Better Immunity

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Another week of self-quarantine rolls in, and after Easter and Passover, the world readies itself to observe another religious event while practicing social distancing. The sacred month of fasting, Ramadan.

Starting from 23rd April 2020, millions of Muslims will observe a period of fasting from dawn to dusk for 30 days in accordance with their religious beliefs. While fasting in in this month is meant to purify the soul and build a closer relation with God for Muslims, the concept has also leapt into the health and wellness scene for all its benefits.

Intermittent fasting has become a full-fledged diet that many in the health conscious are swearing by. It is a modified kind of a fasting method, which involves not eating anything, or being ‘on a fast’ for 12, 16 or sometimes even 24 hours at a time.

What is Intermittent Fasting

The concept of intermittent fasting is not really a new one. Many religions have preached some form of intermittent fasting since ancient times.

There are several variations of Intermittent Fasting(IF). You can choose the one you feels suits your lifestyle and routine the most. What may work for others may not for you. It can take some attempts before you settle on the style that brings out the best results.

Some of the more widely used IF techniques are:

Time Restricted Eating TRE

This method of IF is easy and sustainable. As a thumb's rule, you do not eat for a particular number of hours and return to normal eating once the fasting window has lapsed. Essentially, you would fast from the last meal of your day and continue fasting into the following morning.

16:8 Diet

This kind of Intermittent Fasting requires a longer 20 hour fasting space and a very short 4 hour non-fasting period. Again, you can choose when you want to be eating. Typically, it includes a brunch and an early dinner. There are no specific rules to what you can eat, but as a general idea, it is advisable to eat filling and nutritious meals to keep your energy levels up while you refrain from eating.

5:2 FastzDiet

The 5:2 fasting diet involves controlling calories on 2 days of the week, down to 500-600 calories per day. These calories are spread throughout the day or eaten all at once. During the rest of the week, there is no calorie restriction.

Alternate Day Fasting

This IF style is simply fasting one day and eating the next. Typically, even the next day your caloric intake will be limited to about 500 calories. This is a more intense version, and likely to be unsustainable in the long run.

Recent studies have proved that abstaining from food is beneficial in more ways than one for humans and animals. Research done on mice showed that fasting improved symptoms of multiple sclerosis. Another crucial and very unique result that was highlighted was the ability to fight off infections. When mice were injected with a pathogen that they had been able to recover from once before, the scientists observed that mice with full bellies took about a week to clear the infections, whereas fasting mice fought them off within two days!

Are you thinking what I am thinking? Could it be that the answer to battle this crazy virus is plain, good ol’ fashioned fasting? Well, that’s for you to decide. Reading on, I will take you through this style of caloric restriction and it's proven benefits.

Benefits of Intermittent Fasting

Weight Loss

It is especially important to keep in mind that any diet can only work with proper adherence and dedication. IF isn’t a magic pill that shows results as soon as you pop it. It has its own advantages and limitations as is the case with any other diet.

What Happens When You Fast?

Fasting for up to 16 hours a day and eating and drinking only in the 8 hour window causes a chain of reactions in our body. The first few hours of fasting are pretty regular since the body is going through the normal process of digesting glycogen and packing glucose as fuel for energy. After about five to six hours, our body goes into a stage of metabolic ketosis.

Ketones are enzymes made by the liver when there isn't enough insulin to turn glucose into energy. So, fat cells are activated to use fat as a source of energy. The liver will turn fat into ketones, a chemical that runs through the bloodstream. Your muscles and other tissues can then use the ketones for energy.

This is where the process of fat breakdown occurs and the broken-down fat is turned to ketones. This is also the time when the actual fasting begins. During this stage you could be experiencing headaches, lethargy and dizziness. Worry not, you are not starving, it is the chain reaction that the ketosis has set up. Your body releases cholesterol and uric acid which helps in overall detoxification. No entry of carbohydrates into the body, signals it to create glucose using fat.

Gut Cleanse

When we don’t consume any food, our digestive system gets a break from its regular duties of digesting incoming food and can concentrate on removing existing toxins from our systems. Fasting allows the gut to strengthen its lining which is very important. The also stimulates autophagy, a process where the cells run a self-cleanse and get rid of damaged and unsafe matter.

Effects Of Intermittent Fasting On Immunity

There are several other benefits of intermittent fasting on our overall health, but I am looking to talk more in terms of how it affects immunity.

During cycles of prolonged fasting, the stem cells shift from a dormant state to self-renewal state. In studies done on patients undergoing chemotherapy, the period of not eating, reduced white blood cell counts by a significant value. If done consistently and over a course of at least 6 months, it was seen that fasting killed old and damaged cells and generated new ones.

The body essentially while using fat stores to make energy, also breaks down a good portion of WBC’s. This depletion triggers stem cell-based renewal of brand-new immune system cells.

Another function happening within our immune system while fasting is the regulation of inflammatory cytokines. Two cytokines, Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha and Interleukin-6 are responsible for inducing a very potent inflammatory response. Fasting lowers the release of these two inflammatory factors, hence encouraging brain responses that suppress inflammation, systemic bacterial and viral infections.

Though fasting is highly recommended and beneficial, it is not suited for everyone. Health compromised individuals, pregnant and lactating women, children and older adults with health issues may be advised against fasting. Some fasts may allow light fluids like water and infused water to keep up hydration.

Final Say

While it is definitely desirable to develop a lifestyle that involves some sort of fasting cycle, the question is, is this the right time to start a new health habit? Some may say, not really, too risky to stay off food. For others, the quarantine season seems to be the best time to start and work on a new routine.