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Fasting triggers stem cell regeneration of damaged, old immune system (2014)

news.usc.edu

21–30 of 175 posts

Re: Fasting triggers stem cell regeneration of damaged, old immune system (2014)

#21

Do they literally mean zero intake of calories for 72 hours? That sounds like a long time. How do you prepare for that nutrition wise and mentally? People eat at night during the ramadan.

Thanks to blue1 who found the original paper (http://www.cell.com/cell-stem-cell/fulltext/S1934-5909%2814%...), I found this in the comments section: "In this study, the mice were allowed to drink water, but no food was allowed. In general, when limited food & water are allowed, the protocol is referred to as a "fasting-mimicking diet""

So no food, but water was allowed.

Just remember the context: the mice were subjected to chemotherapy schedules... so it's not like "hey take healthy mice, fast them and see them get healthy", but more like "hey take healthy mice, fast them, subject them to chemotherapy, and look... their immune system responds better than if we allowed them to eat pre-chemo" (apologies if I summarised this wrong)

Re: Fasting triggers stem cell regeneration of damaged, old immune system (2014)

#22
post #3

Do they literally mean zero intake of calories for 72 hours? That sounds like a long time. How do you prepare for that nutrition wise and mentally? People eat at night during the ramadan.

I suppose not, but the lack of specification which method of fasting was used is the most glaring omission in this piece.

see my comment above: "In this study, the mice were allowed to drink water, but no food was allowed"

Re: Fasting triggers stem cell regeneration of damaged, old immune system (2014)

#25

Do they literally mean zero intake of calories for 72 hours? That sounds like a long time. How do you prepare for that nutrition wise and mentally? People eat at night during the ramadan.

If you have regularly eaten well for some time before (i.e. no junk food but real food) you probably (?) have a sufficient store of nutrients to keep your system running for 72 hours.

The important question to me: Does drinking coffee (black without sugar naturally) blow the supposedly positive effects of the fast?

Re: Fasting triggers stem cell regeneration of damaged, old immune system (2014)

#26
post #24

Donating blood has a very similar "boost" effect, and also helps save lives.

Are there long term studies of the health effects of blood donation?

I wonder if there's a way to have a control group that thinks they donated, but didn't. Fake blood pack maybe?

Re: Fasting triggers stem cell regeneration of damaged, old immune system (2014)

#27
post #22
post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I suppose not, but the lack of specification which method of fasting was used is the most glaring omission in this piece.

see my comment above: "In this study, the mice were allowed to drink water, but no food was allowed"

Thanks for taking the time to drill into the study. It's just disappointing that the journalists apparently didn't have the time (or didn't consider it relevant).

Re: Fasting triggers stem cell regeneration of damaged, old immune system (2014)

#28
post #17

I tried searching for the original article, but this is the closest I could find that had a better writeup than from the telegraph: https://news.usc.edu/63669/fasting-triggers-stem-cell-regene... This is the most relevant summary: "In both mice and a Phase 1 human clinical trial involving patients receiving chemotherapy, long periods of not eating significantly lowered white blood cell counts. In mice, fasting cycles…

>So, mice, and people undergoing chemotherapy. Not exactly (for those who have had friends and relatives ever had to undergo chemotherapy, you will understand what I mean) the common population.

Why would it be any different for the "common population"?

>I'll pass on this intermittent fasting "fad" for now!

Fad? It's being around for millennia for.

Re: Fasting triggers stem cell regeneration of damaged, old immune system (2014)

#30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Please explain where the calories in plain water come from.

According to mass-energy equivalence, every gram of water contains ~2.15*10^13 calories.

So where can I sign up for having my stomach replaced with a matter-antimater reactor or whatever it is this gadget that actually gives me access to this energy?
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