4-Day Fast • Hacker News Board

Re: 4-Day Fast

#21

Post by zacharyz » Sun, Apr 02, 2017, 3:53 AM UTC

jimmies wrote: post #16

The whole amino-acids thing that the author talked about made me cringe a little bit. "Amino-acids" is just basically the fancy word for "proteins" (I know there are amino-acids that aren't proteins, but let's not be nitpicking here) and in turns, "proteins" is just another fancy word for "shit we eat everyday." It doesn't matter that much what form it is (meat, plants, milk, powder), when digested in your body, it's…

Yep - in the intermittent fasting community, BCAAs (which the author was probably taking) are known to kick you out of the fasting state.

Re: 4-Day Fast

#22

Post by pizza » Sun, Apr 02, 2017, 3:53 AM UTC

It's the exogenous ketones bit that I'm interested in. Dr Richard Veech has had some interesting publications out on dextro-betahydroxybutyrate [0]. In short, d-bhb is like an entirely separate macronutrient (not fat/carb/protein/alcohol) that is readily metabolizable and has higher thermodynamic efficiency- this translates to lower-metabolic damage post brain trauma, much better underwater breath holding times, something like a couple % power output increase for athletes, etc.

Thing is, the d-bhb production process is really expensive, and it's also pretty unpalatable (and needs to be eaten en masse).

[0] http://drveech.com/

Re: 4-Day Fast

#23

Post by qume » Sun, Apr 02, 2017, 3:54 AM UTC

naasking wrote: post #4

scottlocklin wrote: post #2

Fasting is definitely underappreciated. As are cold showers and deep breathing a la Wim Hof.

Hot baths are also good for your body. Any activity where your body has to work hard to establish homeostasis is a form of exercise.

Reference: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5yV29Kvy5VjxL385H0X...

Re: 4-Day Fast

#24

Post by enraged_camel » Sun, Apr 02, 2017, 3:56 AM UTC

rpwverheij wrote: post #10

If you want the fast to have a detoxing effect, skip the 2 - 4 cups of coffee per day

There is no such thing as a "detox". It's a myth.

http://www.webmd.com/diet/a-z/detox-diets

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/dec/05/detox-m...

Re: 4-Day Fast

#25

Post by [deleted] » Sun, Apr 02, 2017, 3:57 AM UTC

[deleted]

Re: 4-Day Fast

#26

Post by qume » Sun, Apr 02, 2017, 3:57 AM UTC

helloindia wrote: post #14

jbhatab wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

why? It's true.

No doubt Steve Jobs is a role model as an Innovator. But as a health role model, not so much.

It's sad so many people put in all the effort of a vegan diet, then end up with worse health outcomes.

On the other hand, a vegan diet based on whole foods, not processed like oils and flours, and avoiding too much omega-6 oil and sugar has an astonishing range of health benefits.

I'm surprised this site hasn't been posted / discussed on HN before:

http://nutritionfacts.org

Re: 4-Day Fast

#27

Post by arvinsim » Sun, Apr 02, 2017, 3:58 AM UTC

scottlocklin wrote: post #2

Fasting is definitely underappreciated. As are cold showers and deep breathing a la Wim Hof.

It's good that fasting is gaining acceptance. But I also don't like shoving it down other peoples throat.

Let them take it up and discover the benefits themselves.

Re: 4-Day Fast

#28

Post by flountown » Sun, Apr 02, 2017, 4:00 AM UTC

empath75 wrote: post #3

> Steve Jobs was a regular faster. He also died of cancer at a fairly young age after trying to treat it with diet instead of medical treatment. Probably not the best health role model.

I don't know why the author used that example. The point of fasting is nutritional ketosis and Jobs was known as a fruitarian for a large chunk of his life which is at direct odds with ketosis. Fasting does have some beneficial outcomes for cancer patients: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/fasting-might-boo...

The best source of fasting benefits I've found is Dr. Dom D'Agostino. He's a huge proponent of occasional fasts and the ketogenic diet.

Re: 4-Day Fast

#29

Post by ams6110 » Sun, Apr 02, 2017, 4:02 AM UTC

empath75 wrote: post #3

> Steve Jobs was a regular faster. He also died of cancer at a fairly young age after trying to treat it with diet instead of medical treatment. Probably not the best health role model.

To be fair, pancreatic cancer doesn't offer much hope even with treatment.

Re: 4-Day Fast

#30

Post by dsp1234 » Sun, Apr 02, 2017, 4:08 AM UTC

There are two main sources of fuel for the human body: ketones (derived from fat) and glucose (derived from carbohydrates).

Ketones aren't a fuel, they are byproduct of burning fatty acids.

As an analogy, Ketones aren't wood (fuel), they are ashes (byproduct).