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The Hunger Gains: Extreme Calorie-Restriction Diet Shows Anti-Aging Results

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Regular fasting is good for our health

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A new study shows five days of hunger a month may reduce risk factors for aging and age-related diseases

By Richard Conniff on February 16, 2017

Source : Scientific American
https://www.scientificamerican.com/...s-anti-aging-results/?WT.mc_id=SA_WR_20170222

The idea that organisms can live longer, healthier lives by sharply reducing their calorie intake is not exactly new. Laboratory research has repeatedly demonstrated the anti-aging value of calorie restriction, often called CR, in animals from nematodes to rats—with the implication that the same might be true for humans.

In practice though, permanently reducing calorie intake by 25 to 50 percent or more sounds to many like a way to extend life by making it not worth living. Researchers have also warned that what works for nematodes or rats may not work—and could even prove dangerous—in humans, by causing muscle or bone density loss, for example.

But now two new studies appear to move calorie restriction from the realm of wishful thinking to the brink of practical, and perhaps even tolerable, reality. Writing in Nature Communications, researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the National Institute on Aging reported last month chronic calorie restriction produces significant health benefits in rhesus monkeys—a primate with humanlike aging patterns—indicating “that CR mechanisms are likely translatable to human health.” The researchers describe one monkey they started on a 30 percent calorie restriction diet when he was 16 years old, late middle age for this type of animal. He is now 43, a longevity record for the species, according to the study, and the equivalent of a human living to 130.

In the second study, published this week in Science Translational Medicine, a research team led by gerontologist Valter Longo at the University of Southern California (U.S.C.) suggests it is possible to gain anti-aging benefits without signing up for a lifetime of hunger. Instead, a “fasting-mimicking diet,” practiced just five days a month for three months—and repeated at intervals as needed—is “safe, feasible and effective in reducing risk factors for aging and age-related diseases.”

Some researchers, however, still find the calorie-restriction argument unpersuasive. Leslie Robert, a biochemist and physician at the University of Paris who was not involved in the two new studies, says pharmaceutical approaches offer greater anti-aging potential than “inefficient and apparently harmful” diets. The important thing, adds Luigi Fontana, a longevity researcher at the Washington University School of Medicine in Saint Louis who also was not involved in the new work, is “if you’re doing a healthy diet, exercising, everything good, without doing anything extreme, without making life miserable by counting every single calorie.”

Rozalyn Anderson, a researcher in the Wisconsin study, does not necessarily disagree. “Life is difficult enough without engaging in some bonkers diet,” she says. “We really study this as a paradigm to understand aging. We’re not recommending people do it.” The combined results in the Nature Communications paper show aging is “malleable” in primates, she explains, and that “aging itself presents a reasonable target for intervention.” Whereas conventional medicine views aging as a fight against cancer, cardiovascular issues, neural degeneration and other diseases, she adds, calorie restriction “delays the aging and vulnerability. Instead of going after diseases one at a time, you go after the underlying vulnerability and tackle them all at once.”

Despite her reservations about recommending CR, Anderson praised the work of the research team in the Science Translational Medicine study for “pushing this forward for possible application in clinics.” In that study, test subjects followed a carefully designed 50 percent calorie restricted diet (totaling about 1,100 calories on the first day and 70 percent (about 700 calories) on the next four days, then ate whatever they wanted for the rest of the month.
Longo, the gerontologist at U.S.C., says the underlying theory of the on-again/off-again approach is that the regenerative effects of the regimen occur not so much from the fasting itself as from the recovery afterward. By contrast, long-term, uninterrupted calorie restriction can lead to the sort of negative effects seen in extreme conditions like anorexia.

The calorie-restricted diet in Longo’s study was 100 percent plant-based and featured vegetable soups, energy bars, energy drinks and a chip snack as well as mineral and vitamin supplements. It included nutrients designed to manipulate the expression of genes involved in aging-related processes, Longo explains. (Longo and U.S.C. are both owners of L-Nutra, the company that manufactures the diet. But he says he takes no salary or consulting fees from the company and has assigned his shares to a nonprofit organization established to support further research.)

Even the five-day-a-month calorie restriction regimen was apparently a struggle for some test subjects, resulting in a 25 percent dropout rate. But health benefits in the form of decreased body mass and better levels of glucose, triglycerides and cholesterol, along with other factors, showed up after the third month and persisted for at least three months—even after subjects had returned full-time to a normal diet. Notably, given concerns about other forms of calorie restriction, lean muscle mass remained unchanged.

The benefits were greater for people who were obese or otherwise unhealthy, Longo says. But those individuals might also need to repeat the five-day regimen as often as once a month to the point of recovery, he adds, whereas individuals who are already healthy and athletic might repeat it just twice a year.

Neither of the two new studies argues the benefits of CR necessarily add up to a longer life. Longevity in humans is still an unpredictable by-product of our myriad variations in individual biology, behavior and circumstance. The objective, according to researchers, is merely to make the healthy portion of our lives last longer.
 
Is there anyone whose family continues to practice proper and regular fasting ? Have you observed the health benefits (in layman terms)?
 
Our ancestors insisted on regular fasting days in each month and most of the people make fun of it and go

'feasting' instead of 'fasting'! Some research in the West has to prove this, to make people believe! :)
 
Is there anyone whose family continues to practice proper and regular fasting ? Have you observed the health benefits (in layman terms)?
My mom had regular fasting days every month - fasting in the real sense and not eating fruits instead of rice! At night she had

very light tiffin. She enjoyed good health till her end, at the age of 92. My maternal uncle and aunt used to fast for four days

every month and uncle did not even use a walking stick till his end, at the age of 94. Aunt is alive and healthy. They could go on

long tours without proper food, for days together! :thumb:
 
Mostly what we Hindus call fasting is not actual fasting cos some drink fluids but yet call it fasting.

Fasting in the real sense should be sans water and food for 12 hrs.
 
Does fasting amounts to punishing ourself... instead of God punishing....?

Twelve hours without food.....!

There may be scientific ...... and spiritual reasons too.........:)
 
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My mom had regular fasting days every month - fasting in the real sense and not eating fruits instead of rice! At night she had

very light tiffin. She enjoyed good health till her end, at the age of 92. My maternal uncle and aunt used to fast for four days

every month and uncle did not even use a walking stick till his end, at the age of 94. Aunt is alive and healthy. They could go on

long tours without proper food, for days together! :thumb:

Smt RR -

Thanks for sharing this. More than longevity periodic fasting actually seem to help with quality of life as well.
 
Fasting I believe is advocated on auspicious days and so one should look that that angle on health benefits
 
Fasting I believe is advocated on auspicious days and so one should look that that angle on health benefits

Here is a more relevant research focused on practices in Tamil Nadu

http://www.ijem.in/article.asp?issn...=20;issue=6;spage=858;epage=862;aulast=Kannan

"For example, devotees of Lord Shiva tend to fast on Mondays and on the 13th day of the lunar cycle (pradosham), whereas devotees of Lord Vishnu tend to fast on Saturday. Fasting on Tuesday is common in Southern India and dedicated to Mariamman (a manifestation of Shakthi). Ritual fasting may also be done for the manes as exemplified by the new moon day and the mane fortnight (pitru paksh in the North and maalaya paksha in the South). Periodic observances are seen also during the week before the Skanda Shasti, which is celebrated with fervor in Tamil Nadu since Skanda or Muruga is hailed the Tamil God. Many of these fasts are not total fasts and extend dawn to dusk with allowances for liquids fruit and milk (called in Tamil as oru pozhudu – one meal). On such days, the dinner is usually made of broken grain as rice is a taboo.

Jains in Tamil Nadu fast on full moon days, Chaturdasi (14th day of the fortnight), and Ashtami (8th day of the fortnight)."

When tied to a religious calendar it is easy to observe the practice.

Couple of years ago I moved to mainly vegan diet (mostly raw and cooked vegetables (cooked without oil), fruits, nuts , no dairy) and also observe periodic fasting not tied to a religious calendar. This has been most helpful for better sense of well being.
 
Dear Sravna..a human can fast the body from water and food but how many can succesfully fast the mind?

Almost next to impossible???

Opinion please Sravna.
 
Dear Renuka,

What do you mean by fasting the mind?


Sravana Ji,

Perhaps Doctor Mam may come with an elaborate reply touching...emptiness, patience, stillness, tranquility and bliss.....:)
 
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Sravana Ji,

Perhaps Doctor Mam may come with an elaborate reply touching...emptiness, patience, stillness, tranquility and bliss.....:)

Yes Sir may be, I think Renuka means controlling one's desires and passions.
 
Dear Sravna..Rudhran ji is able to read my mind LOL.
That is exactly what I had in mind.

During the act of fasting from food/water..our blood sugar levels fall..now this can affect our moods and make us impatient..angry and less sensitive and not to mention rash behavior and lack of judgment.

Even hungry animals display anger.

What do you think is advisable to prevent mood changes when one is fasting.

Its pretty clear that fasting the body alone isnt enough.

Surely we would want positive effects on the mind.
 
Dear Sravna..Rudhran ji is able to read my mind LOL.
That is exactly what I had in mind.

During the act of fasting from food/water..our blood sugar levels fall..now this can affect our moods and make us impatient..angry and less sensitive and not to mention rash behavior and lack of judgment.

Even hungry animals display anger.

What do you think is advisable to prevent mood changes when one is fasting.

Its pretty clear that fasting the body alone isnt enough.

Surely we would want positive effects on the mind.

Dear Renuka,

I agree when one is hungry, anger may happen but I think in the larger picture fasting by itself helps us to gradually gain control rather than lose control. So if one does fast regularly and sincerely the benefits are there in the long run and we would be better off than when we started.
 
Dear Renu,

Hunger may make humans impatient and hence the fasting is advised on auspicious days. :pray:

Thinking of the Almighty is sure to make a person :cool: !
 
I have heard about yogi, bhogi and rogi so far; now drohi is added to the list! :lol:

''One who eats once is a great Yogi (Divine Man). One who eats twice is a great Bhogi (sensual gratifier). One who eats thrice

is a great Rogi (plagued by ill-health). One who eats 4 times is a great Drohi (one who torments all) — Proverb of India ''

Source: Are you a Yogi or a Bhogi? - Dharma Lounge
 
Dear Sravna..Rudhran ji is able to read my mind LOL.
That is exactly what I had in mind.

During the act of fasting from food/water..our blood sugar levels fall..now this can affect our moods and make us impatient..angry and less sensitive and not to mention rash behavior and lack of judgment.

Even hungry animals display anger.

What do you think is advisable to prevent mood changes when one is fasting.

Its pretty clear that fasting the body alone isnt enough.

Surely we would want positive effects on the mind.

Doctor Mam,

IMO there is a thin line of difference between fasting and starving......

Correct me if I am wrong... :)
 
Yogis were fasting but Kuchela was starving!!
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Yogis were fasting but Kuchela was starving!!
icon3.png


While you are talking about stomach, I refer to mind.
icon3.png


And by the way I beg to differ from your version...

The ground reality is, it is Kuberas who starve and not the Kuchelas.

While the Kuberas though possess enough wealth to take anything they like, they strictly go by the advice of their Doctors due to ailments they suffer like diabetes, obesity,etc (with countless and boundless restrictions on food), whereas a Kuchela is happy to take anything and everything that comes in his way, as majority of whom are, in fact, free from the above ailments.

P.S: In Tamil Nadu, every Kuchela gets 20 kgs of free rice every month…..Thanks to JJ
May be some of them starve for TASMAC சரக்கு. ….:)
 
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