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

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101–110 of 194 posts

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

#101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is there any evidence that fasting for 3 days is not safe or is this just an assumption? As I understand it is perfectly safe for all but the most fragile people.

As long as you're in good health and stay hydrated, you can safely fast for almost 30 days. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25552155 "Conclusion: Ramadan fasting is associated with transiently impaired insulin sensitivity, compensated for by an increased p3-cell function. However, the pattern of insulin resistance-mediating adipocytokines suggests a potentially beneficial metabolic effect of Ramadan fasting." http…

Ramadan fasting is only during daylight hours, and is not remotely like foregoing food entirely for even 36 hours.

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

#102

Better publicity materials: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-06/uosc-fts06021... The paper: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.stem.2014.04.014 Really it's just not worth even reading whatever the popular press has to say about a particular strand of research, especially when lines like "regenerate the entire immune system" are thrown around. No, no, no. Not what is happening: read the paper or even just the publ…

The quote about rebuilding the entire immune system was taken directly from Valter Longo, one of the authors of the paper.

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

#103
post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As long as you're in good health and stay hydrated, you can safely fast for almost 30 days. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25552155 "Conclusion: Ramadan fasting is associated with transiently impaired insulin sensitivity, compensated for by an increased p3-cell function. However, the pattern of insulin resistance-mediating adipocytokines suggests a potentially beneficial metabolic effect of Ramadan fasting." http…

Ramadan fasting is only during daylight hours, and is not remotely like foregoing food entirely for even 36 hours.

My understanding of nutrition regarding both intermittent and long-term (at least 6-10 days) fasting is that as long as your body can properly regulate insulin levels and you have fat reserves, you're not in danger of health issues from it. That's exactly what fat reserves are for.

A paper on obese women fasting for 6 days: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9330585

Effect of long-term fasting of obese patients on pancreatic exocrine function, gastrointestinal hormones and bicarbonate concentration in plasma (20 days): http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6207670

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

#104

Better publicity materials: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-06/uosc-fts06021... The paper: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.stem.2014.04.014 Really it's just not worth even reading whatever the popular press has to say about a particular strand of research, especially when lines like "regenerate the entire immune system" are thrown around. No, no, no. Not what is happening: read the paper or even just the publ…

Daily Telegraph is on it's last legs. It's going to die soon (thank god). Surprised to see articles posted here from it. Most of the reddit UK sites don't bother with them.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Daily_Telegraph

> Circulation 544,546 Daily[2] (as of March 2014)

That's considerably more than the Guardian (at 186,000 daily) or the Independent (at less than 100,000) or both of them combined.

Low quality means little in terms of sales - look at the god-awful Daily Mail.

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

#105
post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

you're supposed to 'believe' to benefit from the best case scenario dude :) just rationalizing about it is not supposed to be enough... and additionally, fasting was around before it was introduced in islam; check it's versions in judaism, christianity... actually, it was also around before that. people used to fast during equinoxes for a very long time for all sorts of different ceremonies...

If God exists, I doubt he cares if we beleive in him or not. I like to beleive he would not be that insecure.

for the sake of argument let's assume there is a God. and let's say He was better than all the things He created. better than that awesome sunset that you saw that took your breath away; better than that favorite meal you love -- you know the one. love is giving the object of your love the best... the best you've got. what if God giving Himself was Love defined?

just for argument's sake...

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

#106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> - fasting on Ramadan was probably created by a religious leader who felt better after doing it himself and though it to be a good idea for everybody else to do it. That religious leader would be Muhammad. That's one way to see things and how I explain part of my belief in Islam to non-religious people: Worst case scenario, I'm just doing things that I believe are pretty smart (fasting, praying, helping the poor an…

you're supposed to 'believe' to benefit from the best case scenario dude :) just rationalizing about it is not supposed to be enough... and additionally, fasting was around before it was introduced in islam; check it's versions in judaism, christianity... actually, it was also around before that. people used to fast during equinoxes for a very long time for all sorts of different ceremonies...

Correct , there are many other religious groups that fast - Hindus, Jains, Christians etc. I've found that fasting practices among Coptic Christians is more intense/severe than any other religion I have seen (so far at least)

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

#107
i fasted for 14 days on spirulina tablets and water as an office bet to prove its effectiveness and still take it everyday. every now and then i do 3-5 day fast to cleanse my body, but technically i'm still eating food. i have yet to do any blood tests to prove its effectiveness besides my own experiments and what i've read. i also don't recommend people doing a fast for 14 days...maybe 3-5 days at first.

after the first few days without eating normal/cooked food it became easier per say, as cravings went down and your body goes into fast mode, even when consuming raw spirulina. i found weekends to be tough as you tend to go out more, and ads are everywhere for food.

also, after the second day you really start to shed water weight and your caloric intake dips into the negatives, as spirulina has about 10 calories per serving which is about 3g. i took an average about 30-60 tablets a day, roughly 2/3g (4-6 tabs) per doze. you drink a lot of water (which you should be doing anyway) m-f was easier for me as you're busy with work when compared to the weekends.

it was asked, how will we know if i'm honest and actually don't eat? we decided on the honor system and we did the math, loosely. in 14 days i should lose about 14lbs, at 1 pound /day, so i did a weigh in before and after. on the last day i weighed in and i did lose about a pound a day with a total of 14.6 lbs lost and i felt..good?/fine, lost weight, had new perspective at starvation, and food itself. you still should eat more than spirulina, which i did at 9pm that monday...green apples and raw chocolate bars were my choices :)

spirulina (cyanobacteria) gives you insane amounts of energy and contains a boat load of nutrients (rich in vitamin A (beta-carotene), B1, B2, B3, B6, E, and K). it also converts sunlight to protein more efficiently than any other living thing. it has the highest content of protein of any other food source around roughly (65-71%). its ancient food, and one of the important foods of the future. it along with other raw foods (fruits/veggies) IMHO is better for you than any other human made sludge/supplements. you can't beat real food and nature.

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

#108
post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Are mormons not christians?

Mormons claim Christianity and espouse some Christian principals (i.e. blood atonement for sins of the world), although many of their beliefs (i.e. God is an evolved man and through adherence to Mormon doctrine men can become Gods after death) put them well outside the realm of what is considered mainstream Christianity. I'm not sure these additional beliefs necessarily disqualify them as "Christian" though as they d…

>i.e. blood atonement for sins of the world

That was never a christian belief to begin with.

The atonement was (supposedly) because of God's own incarnation as Christ, our of love, not because of some blood offering to God (i.e. the crucifixion, which was not even meant as such, anyway).

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

#109
post #23

I hate the fact that this study seems to be tainted with potential conflict of interest as outlined by @themodelplumber. I wish science could get back to just-being-science and focus on provable, repeatable results sans corporate involvement, as I think if this is really true, it could be a real breakthrough. I have some experience with fasting, and was always surprised how good I felt after a couple of days, and to…

I read Antifragile + The Black Swan once every year to remind me of this - and everytime I read something I think about confirmation bias and silent evidence. they are not tough concepts, but the human brain isn't really weird to think that way - unfortunately (as talked about in Thinking Fast and Slow also) Taleb, for all his faults, is really good at calling out people for scientific research that contains conflict…

Taleb is also an advocate for fasting.

https://m.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=101521750395...

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

#110

I've been eating once a day for the past 3.5 years and I'd read about the supposed immune system benefits. I've not had a cold/flu since then and I used to get 3-4 a year, so I'm sticking with it and I've become used to it anyway.

FWIW, eating once a day is recommended in the "Hacker Diet" book, written by the author of Autocad. The book says multiple (smaller) meals are fine too, but you have to read it yourself, I won't do it justice here.

"but you have to read it yourself"

Also, you need to try it yourself. Every body is different.

You should try things like multiple small meals, or one big meal, or no carbs, or no gluten and honestly evaluate how they impact your life.

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