In order to survive, the health and wellness industry has to constantly come up with new gimmicks. One category of gimmicks are fad diets. And fasting has proven to be a somewhat popular fad.
Well, the main issue here is that fasting has some serious consequences for those wishing to lose weight. What type of consequences? Check out the following list:
1. Liver drainage. What drains out of your liver? Glycogen. And this can happen in less than a days time. Without glycogen your body doesn’t have a mechanism to control blood sugar. Thus, you’ll end up with extremely low levels of energy.
2. The conversion of protein to glucose. Your nervous system needs glucose (sugar) to survive. Unfortunately, fat can’t be converted to glucose so your body attacks the next best thing: protein. It essentially eats away at your lean tissue and converts it into sugar.
3. The cannibalism of other tissues. Muscle tissue isn’t the only victim here. Other vital tissues like organs will also be cannibalized and transformed into sugar. This is definitely not a healthy state to be in.
4. Ketosis. If you fast for an extended period of time, your body will produce ketone bodies to prevent death. Ketone bodies are modified fat fragments that your nervous system can survive on, although not optimal. Thus, you begin to function on inefficient energy sources.
5. No benefits. If you’re fasting because you think it’s healthy, think again. There hasn’t been any peer reviewed research that clearly demonstrates a benefit from fasting. Most likely, fasting will have a negative effect on your health.
6. Metabolic acidosis. Acidosis is not fun. An immediate drawback will be the inability to exercise with intensity. In fact, exercise will become astronomically painful. You’ll also lose an abundance of minerals through urine.
What effect do all these factors have on your body? A decreased metabolism. And studies have shown that most people end up bingeing after a fast above and beyond what’s needed for weight maintenance. The end result here is a massive rebound in weight and fat gain!
