Fast way to better health
How would you like it if I told you there was a way to eat pretty much anything and everything you wanted to eat and still maintain your health? Or better yet, what if I told you that you could eat pretty much anything and everything you wanted and even improve your health? Would you be interested? I figured as much.
There is a way to reduce blood sugar, improve insulin sensitivity, reduce blood pressure, increase HDL levels, get rid of diabetes, live a lot longer, and still be able to lose a little weight. All without giving up the foods you love. And without having to eat those foods in tiny amounts. Sounds like a late-night infomercial gimmick, but it isn’t.
Before I get to the real nitty gritty of how such a thing can be done, let’s look at a method that has been proven in countless research institutions to bring about all the above-mentioned good things. It’s called caloric restriction.
When researchers restrict the caloric intake of a group of lab animals to about 30 to 40 percent of that of their ad libitum (all they want to eat) fed counterparts, they find that the calorically restricted animals live 30 percent or so longer, don’t develop cancers, diabetes, heart disease, or obesity. These calorically restricted (CR) animals have low blood sugar levels, low insulin levels, good insulin sensitivity, low blood pressure and are, in general, much healthier than the ad lib fed animals.
Most of the work in caloric restriction has been done on rodents, but there is a long term study on Rhesus monkeys (17 years at this point) that appears to confirm the rodent data on longevity and health with CR in primates. There are no human longevity studies, but there are a number of human studies on CR and health that show that human subjects under CR conditions reduce blood sugar, improve insulin sensitivity, reduce blood pressure, etc., so it stands to reason that if humans reduced their caloric intake by 30-40 percent for their entire lives, they would also live longer.
Caloric restriction is a terrific way to lose weight and get healthy; problem is, it’s not much fun. When rats live out their little ratty lives calorically restricted in their cages they seem to show signs of depression and irritability. Primates do for sure. If primates don’t get enough cholesterol, they can actually become violent. But, if you’re willing to put up with a little irritability, hostility and depression, it might be worth cutting your calories by 30 percent for the rest of your long, healthy miserable life.
Doesn’t sound so cheery? You’re not ready to sign up yet?
Well, there is a better way.
A number of different research teams have studied a method by which rodents can get all the health and longevity benefits of caloric restriction without calorically restricting. And the method has been studied in humans and seems to achieve the same health benefits and, if an old Spanish study can be believed, maybe even an increase in lifespan.
What is this magic method?
Intermittent fasting.
In regular fasting one goes entirely without food, which is caloric restriction carried to the extreme. Going entirely without food in the short term leads to improvement in health, but also leads to an extremely short life unless the fast is aborted.
Intermittent fasting (IF) is just as its name implies: a period of fasting alternated with a period of eating.
But isn’t that what we do anyway? We eat breakfast, then fast until lunch. Then, after lunch, we fast until supper. Then we fast all night. Uh, not exactly.
In research settings animals that are intermittently fasted are fed every other day, so they eat whatever they want for a day, then they are denied food for a day. Interestingly, on feeding days most of the animals eat a almost double the amount that their ad lib fed mates do. Thus the IF animals eat about the same number of calories overall that the ad lib fed animals eat, but, and this is a huge ‘but,’ the IF animals enjoy all the health advantages that the CR animals do, and, in fact, are even healthier than the CR animals.
Like caloric restriction, intermittent fasting reduces oxidative stress, makes the animals more resistant to acute stress in general, reduces blood pressure, reduces blood sugar, improves insulin sensitivity, reduces the incidence of cancer, diabetes, and heart disease, and improves cognitive ability. But IF does even more. Animals that are intermittently fasted greatly increase the amount of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) relative to CR animals. CR animals don’t produce much more BDNF than do ad libitum fed animals.
What’s BDNF? (The Wikipedia definition is actually pretty good)
BDNF, as its name implies, is a substance that increases the growth of new nerve cells in the brain, but it does much more than that. BDNF is neuroprotective against stress and toxic insults to the brain and is somehow–no one yet knows how, exactly–involved in the insulin sensitivity/glucose regulating mechanism. Infusing BDNF into animals increases their insulin sensitivity and makes them lose weight. Humans with greater levels of BDNF have lower levels of depression. BDNF given to depressed humans reduces their depression. And Increased levels of BDNF improves cognitive ability. In short, you want as much BDNF as you can get., and with IF you can get a lot.
But, who wants to go all day every other day without food?
Well, you don’t have to. MD and I, using ourselves (selflessly, I might add) as subjects have worked it out.
Most rodents feed throughout the day and night, so restricting them for 24 hours does just that: it restricts them for 24 hours. In humans, however, the situation is different. We humans, for the most part, eat only during our waking hours. So if we fast for a day, we end up fasting for about 34 hours and eating for 14, which isn’t the same as 24 on, 24 off.
Let me show you what I mean.
Let’s say you pick a day to start. You eat all day, then go to bed, wake up in the morning and fast all day, then go to bed. You wake up the next morning and eat all day, then go to bed and start again. So, assuming you eat until 10 PM on your eat day, once you quit eating you don’t eat again until 8 AM 34 hours later. If you eat from 8 AM that day until 10 PM, you’ve eaten for 14 hours. so, you’re on (eating) for 14 hours and off (fasting) for 34. MD and I spent a couple of weeks doing it that way, and I’m here to tell you, it’s no fun. At least not on the fast days. The eating days were a different story; they were great, but we would spend the entire day dreading the fast day coming up.
We fooled around with a number of different eat-fast-eat regimens and came up with something that works pretty well. We set up our cutoff time as 6 PM. On the day we started, we ate until 6 PM, then fasted until 6 PM the next day. On the next day we ate supper right after 6 PM and ate breakfast and lunch (and a few snacks) the next day until 6 PM when we started fasting again.
The advantage of this regimen is that we were able to eat every day. One day we would get supper–the next day we would get breakfast and lunch. On no days would we go entirely without food. This schedule worked the best for us.
On the times during the day that we ate, we didn’t stick with our normal low-carb fare; we ate pretty much whatever we wanted, including a fare amount of higher carb stuff. We stuck with the regimen for a few weeks just to see if we could tolerated it, which we did just fine. We ultimately drifted back to our normal low-carb diet, however, just because it seemed to work better with our schedules. We could have been happy on the intermittent fasting regimen for the long term.
I would think that the optimal way to go would be to follow an intermittent fast using low-carb foods during the eating periods. One would get the best of all worlds healthwise this way.
Over the period that we followed the various IF regimens we lost a little weight because, unlike the rodents, we couldn’t eat twice as much during the eating days as we would have eaten were we not fasting. We didn’t check any lab work to see if any values had changed. We weren’t doing a hard core study; we were simply evaluating IF as a practical means for humans to use to improve their health.
In thinking about the process I came to the conclusion that IF was probably the way Paleolithic man ate. We modern humans have become acculturated to the three square meals per day regimen. Animals in the wild, particularly carnivorous animals, don’t eat thrice per day; they eat when they make a kill. I would imagine that Paleolithic man did the same. If I had to make an intelligent guess, I would say that Paleolithic man probably ate once per day or maybe even twice every three days. In data gathered from humans still living in non-Westernized cultures in the last century, it appears that they would gorge after a kill and sleep and lay around doing not much of anything for the next day or so. When these folks got hungry, they went out and hunted and started the cycle again.
If you buy into the idea that the Paleolithic diet is the optimal diet for us today because it is the diet we were molded by the forces of natural selection to perform best on, then you should probably also buy into the idea that a meal timing schedule more like that of Paleolithic mean would provide benefit as well.
One of the things MD and I took away from our IF experience is the idea that we don’t have to eat three meals per day. We now often skip lunch and don’t seem any the worse for it. Sometimes we get up and get going with all our projects and don’t eat breakfast. We try to skip a meal here and there because figure it’s probably good for us. When you get used to it, you don’t really even think about it. And it’s good for you. Don’t take my word for it–look at the medical literature.
There have been a few human studies on IF, and all have shown a marked improvement in virtually every parameter tested. None of the subjects in any of these studies has done the full 24 on-24 off that MD and I did. Most fasted until 5 or 6 PM on the fast days, then ate, then ate regularly on the eat days. Even with this wimpy IF schedule the subjects did better.
One of the recent papers published on the less rigid IF schedules caught my eye because one of the authors was Don Laub, who used to be the chairman of the plastic surgery department at Stanford. When I was in medical school I thought I wanted to be a plastic surgeon so I went to Stanford during a part of my senior year and worked with Dr. Laub as my mentor.
In this study, published in the journal Medical Hypothesis in March of this year, Dr. Laub along with two other physicians (neither of whom I know) underwent their version of and intermittent fast. The three of them have since May 2003 been on a version of the IF in which they consume about 20-50 percent of their estimated daily energy requirements on the fast day and eat whatever they want on the non-fast days.
Since starting their regimen they have
observed health benefits starting in as little as two weeks, in insulin resistance, asthma, seasonal allergies, infectious diseases of viral, bacterial and fungal origin (viral URI, recurrent bacterial tonsillitis, chronic sinusitis, periodontal disease), autoimmune disorder (rheumatoid arthritis), osteoarthritis, symptoms due to CNS inflammatory lesions (Tourette’s, Meniere’s) cardiac arrhythmias (PVCs, atrial fibrillation), menopause related hot flashes.
In their paper these researchers discuss a 1957 paper from the Spanish medical literature.
…the subjects were eating, on alternate days, either 900 calories or 2300 calories, averaging 1600, and that body weight was maintained. Thus they consumed either 56% or 144% of daily caloric requirement. The subjects were in a residence for old people, and all were in perfect health and over 65. Over three years, there were 6 deaths among 60 study subjects and 13 deaths among 60 ad lib-fed controls, non-significant difference. Study subjects were in hospital 123 days, controls 219, highly significant difference. We believe widespread use of this pattern of eating could impact influenza epidemics and other communicable diseases by improving resistance to infection. In addition to the health effects, this pattern of eating has proven to be a good method of weight control, and we are continuing to study the process in conjunction with the NIH.
There is much more to the IF story that I will continue in another post. I would do it in this one, but I (actually my web guy) upgraded my blogging software and somehow the little buttons that let me link to other sites are AWOL. I can’t italicize or set off quotes or do any of the things I normally do in the course of posting. I’m hoping that I will get this straightened out soon. When I do, I’ll go into the subject in a little more detail and show a chart that demonstrates the difference between CR and IF. (Note: the problem is solved; all links are working.)
In the meantime, if any of the readers of this blog would like to undertake an intermittent fast, I would love to hear the results of the experience. Please send a comment.
Related Item: Health Insurance Quotes are available online from several different sites. Make sure you review several plans and talk to a few agents before deciding on buying a plan.
That’s very interesting. Just yesterday it got to be close to 9:30 AM and I realized I had forgotten to eat breakfast (usually have it around 7). I went ahead and had some because I had a quiz coming up at 11 in a class I’m taking and was worried if I didn’t eat I wouldn’t be able to concentrate. We are so strongly programmed to eat 3 times a day. But in the last few weeks there have been half a dozen or more times when I thought “do I really have to eat?” or have nearly forgotten it’s time for a meal. I’ll think about giving IF a try. –Anne
Hi Anne–
I’ve often noticed the same thing: I’m not particularly hungry yet I eat just because it’s time to eat. If I had to go out and run some game to earth, would I be hungry enough to do so? I doubt it.
Good luck on your IF. Keep me posted.
MRE
OK Mike - I didn’t expect to read this one this morning. So a couple of questions spring to mind…
1. How might IF affect muscle mass? If you are not getting your BCAAs from your food your body will cannibalize itself for the stuff. How long CAN a person refrain from protein and not sacrifice what you have? Any data on this? I feel if I undertook an IF regimen I’d lose lean tissue. I certainly don’t think an IF diet is conducive to anabolism but hey…
2. Are not these IF studies done on unhealthy, overfat subjects? I can easily see why IF would help overfat and out of shape Mary Smith or Junk food gorging Joe Anderson, but taking me for example, someone with near perfect internal health markers and bodyfat composition for a 45 year young male, could IF be detrimental?
Thanks Mike! And BTW my blog address is http://www.slowburn.typepad.com
Hi Fred–
I don’t think IF would affect muscle mass much at all. If you go without food for a long period of time, say, several days, your metabolic system goes after your muscle mass to convert the protein stored there into the glucose you need to keep your blood glucose normal. This doesn’t happen in the short term. All the protein structures in the body draw from and add to the amino acid pool. When muscle breaks down the individual amino acids go into the pool from where they’re harvested by the system that converts them to glucose. When new muscle is made, the amino acids used to construct the muscle protein are drawn from the amino acid pool. One of the contributors to the AA pool is enzymes that are no longer needed and junk proteins that the body is cleansing from the cells. When one is fasting, one of the group of enzymes not really needed is the group of digestive enzymes that would otherwise be employed in digesting food. These enzymes break down and their amino acids enter the AA pool where the muscle can pick them up as needed. Also, during an IF, the body goes into ketosis. I posted a few months back on how ketosis stimulates the process of cellular cleansing by removing junk proteins from the cells. The amino acids from these proteins also enter the AA pool where they can be recycled by the muscle mass. So, even though new protein isn’t coming into the body minute by minute from the diet, there is plenty of substrate there in the AA pool to last until the next meal, which is, at most, only 24 hours away.
Second, although many of these studies were done using unhealthy subjects, a number were performed on people, both healthy and unhealthy, who were fasting for religious reasons. In all cases all healthy parameters evaluated improved.
Best–
Mike
I can attest, Mike, it does work, exactly as you said. I don’t do the day on, day off — I found that a bit too disruptive. For close to a year, I’ve eaten just once a day, usually something like a meal and a half between 6-8 pm, fully low-carb, and eating nothing the rest of the time. Benefits are as you mentioned — nuisance health issues go away, zero colds/flu, weight dropped to a comfortable lean zone, and oddly, energy actually INCREASES during the non-eating time. Sure, I get stomach-grumbling hungry late in the day, but it’s easy to take, since I know I’ll be eating later. (Oddly, the feeling isn’t all that unpleasant after a while — somehow makes you feel more alive and tuned.)
I notice coming up on dinner time, I actually get a surge of energy and almost fidgetiness, which I sometimes need to burn off with some exercise. (Which is, I suppose, how Paleo man had the energy to make a kill, even when he hadn’t eaten in a while.)
I know Loren Cordain seemed to be intrigued by the idea of once-a-day meal frequency, as he covered in one of his recent newsletters.
There’s clearly some value to going long(er) periods without food — some sort of metabolic grooving or run-out that the body seems to love. Grazing never worked like that for me.
There’s also a huge psychological benefit here, too: Every day has a great ending. Something you can look forward to.
After the day’s labors, you get to sit down to a ‘feast’ of sorts, and loll about in delicious laziness afterword, guilt-free. There’s a more natural biological rhythm to that, at least for me.
Also, you get to experience the exquisite pleasure of eating well, when you’re truly deep-down hollow hungry. Which we hardly ever experience any more.
Hi Walt–
You’re right on all counts. The hunger is exquisite and the food much more tasty and fulfilling after waiting for it for a while and really looking forward to it. Most of us don’t experience real hunger anymore; we just think we do.
The French don’t like to snack between meals because they feel that the snack diminishes their hunger and prevents them from fully experiencing the meal. I think they’re right.
Loren Cordain and I have had many, many conversations about meal timing. I got him started on the idea a couple of years back. He, too, believes it is the Paleolithic way and that meal timing could be equal in importance to meal composition.
Best–
MRE
Very interesting stuff indeed. I have to talk this through with my husband, but I am positive I’ll give this a try over the next weeks, and will keep you informed.
Hi Detox–
I’ll await your response. I’m keenly interested.
MRE
Oh, and on CR:
Mike, I always wondered about energy expenditure among the CRers. If you’re only eating, say 1600 calories per day, you can only be burning 1600 (if you’re weight-stable).
Which means, you can’t be very physically active; no one-on-one basketball in the driveway, no running. Not too many workouts with weights.
I’m guessing CR’d animals and humans tend to get a bit quiet and sedate — and miss the benefits of vigorous exercise. Unless of course, CR makes up for it in some way.
(Didn’t mean to monopolize.)
No problem. I don’t remember if any of the CR studies discuss the activity levels of the animals. I’ll go back and check. I wouldn’t bet my life on it, but it seems like the CR ones were actually a little more active.
MRE
This article sounds much like something Art Devany would recommend. He is writing a book called Evolutionary Fitness, training and eating like a human did hundreds of years ago. Fasting is part of the regime. He has a website, http://www.arthurdevany.com/. Your take on food is very similar to his.
My wife and I embarked on a fasting program just a few weeks ago, going without food for a good part of the day, and then eating dinner. We do use juice (have a juicer), maybe a glass or two of a vegetable or fruit juice, with lots of water, no coffee. So far we find that we feel a bit ill while we detox, but feel better overall after a day or two. One other note, eating only when hungry is the way to go. How many people are “programmed” to eat at work breaks or social events (where the food is usually bad) because that’s what you do? If you are not hungry, don’t eat!
Hi Audley–
Well said. If you’re not hungry, don’t eat. Seems pretty simple, but it’s amazing how many people eat at set times whether hungry or not.
Keep me posted on your IF efforts.
MRE
There is a diet that uses IF: The Warrior Diet. Its not alternate day fasting however. One basically confines all their eating to a 4 hour window, so you’re fasting 20 hours/day or so.
The author is not a fan of low carb per se, but is a big advocate of whole foods, etc.
Hi VikingDan–
Some time in my dim and distant past I think I read The Warrior Diet. Wasn’t it written by an Israeli commando guy? If I remember correctly, he did bad mouth low carb, but recommended eating a big meal once per day as he believed the warriors of times past had done.
The nice thing about IF is that one can get the benefits from it without sticking to a strict low-carb diet, although I suspect it works even better with a low-carb diet.
Best–
MRE
This sounds really interesting, and I think I might give it a try.
What was your experience with exercise while you did your experiment, and with your current intermittent meal skipping? I would guess it would still be workable, depending on how you schedule your workouts.
Cathy
Hi Cathy–
I didn’t change my workout schedule at all. It didn’t seem to make a big difference when I worked out relative to when I was fasting.
The scheduling problem we did have was with social engagements. If we were invited to a dinner somewhere that was set for an evening when we were supposed to be fasting, we simply moved our time to start fasting until after the dinner. For example, if we were supposed to start fasting at 6 PM as per our regular schedule but instead had a dinner engagement that evening fat 7:30 PM, we ate the dinner, started fasting at 8:30 (or whenever the dinner was over) and fasted until 8:30 the next evening. Then we ate from 8:30 PM until 6 PM the next evening and got back on schedule.
Best–
MRE
Wow. This post sounds great. I haven’t read the whole thing but definitely will. I am aware of some of the research on calorie restriction diets and I think it’s all quite fascinating. I would include exercise as another way to induce a sort of caloric restriction as well.
Anyway, you mentioned you did not know of Art Devany. When you have an hour or two you might want to read this:
http://www.arthurdevany.com/webstuff/images/RevisedEssay.pdf
From what I can tell, most if not all should be right up your alley. Art can be a bit much at times, but his ideas are great. Your blog and his are two of my favorites.
I also like these sites if you are interested:
EVFit.com
Untamedlife.com
GoAnimal.com
I might post again after I read the rest of this latest post.
Thanks for the great info,
Daniel Chong
Hi Daniel–
Thanks for all the links. Let me know if you give IF a try.
MRE
don’t you get unbearably hungry during the fasting periods? I couldn’t imagine getting thru a day at work without any breakfast or lunch, and I have a fairly low stress job.
anyway, if I did try this, I imagine I would try it with a low carb diet, why not have the best of both worlds?
Hi mrfreddy–
Surprisingly, you don’t really get all that hungry during the day. And it’s nice to know that a big, fat juicy meal is awaiting you at 6 PM. I’m here to tell you that the 6 PM meal is one you will really enjoy.
Best–
MRE
I could just weep. I would often do this naturally as a child–or I should say, I would try, and then get disciplined by my parents.
I think that many parents, working with the bad cultural info that’s available, often completely screw up their children’s instincts. Of course, it’s done out of concern and love, which makes it so sad.
If you have read anything on the history of childrearing customs throughout the past few centuries in Western cultures, you know it’s been pretty appalling anyway.
When I look back on what was required of me and many of my childhood friends I can understand why so many of us have ended up obese.
I think I will try the IF starting today. I’ve had my rare steak for breakfast, so I will eat till 6 pm tonight, and then start after 6 pm tomorrow.
A few questions — do coffee and tea count as food, or must it be strictly water–could club soda be used on the fast? Does this change at all how any exercise is scheduled? What about supplements on the morning of the fast? I’m assuming that very low carb can still be used on eating days, I can just have more of whatever it is I’m eating.
Hi LCforevah–
I’m in total agreement with you about the child rearing issues. How many of us have been told that we couldn’t do this or that or couldn’t leave the table until we cleaned up our plate, that children in China were starving, etc. Kids, before this kind of programming, eat when they’re hungry. It is kind of sad that the adults in their lives try to break them of their natural instinct.
As to your questions…
No, coffee, tea, diet drinks, etc. don’t count. At least they didn’t for us. I would drink away.
We didn’t change our exercise schedules, so I don’t really have a recommendation there. It didn’t seem to matter to us.
We did take our supplements on fasting days, we just took them during the period during the day when we were eating, i.e., before 6 PM or after 6 PM depending on the day.
You can indeed follow low-carb during the eating periods and eat all you want. The dinner meal at 6 PM is wonderful.
Best of luck on the IF regimen. Keep me posted; I’m really interested to hear how it works for you.
MRE
My day never feels quite complete without a Eades Blog update, so today is starting very well.
This is very fascinating. I’ve been reading quite a lot about CR since there is an avid, practicing CRON person posting on the low carb forum I frequent. One of his fellow CRONies has had good luck controling Lupus with the diet.
Also, amongst ankylosing spondylitis patients I talk to (me being one) they sometimes use fasts to get out of a flare. Many also seem to have some luck with a No-Starch Diet. I’ll have to post a link to your article on kickas.org message forum and perhaps the IF might be something that could help.
Considering the enormous amount of Pad Thai I had last night… I should IF today.
Hi Nancy–
Thanks for the nice words about the blog; I really appreciate it. I’ll try to be more diligent in my posting, so that more of your days will be complete.
There exists a fair amount of data that low-starch diets (and low-carb diets) work to prevent flare ups of all kinds of autoimmune disorders. Fasting itself gives the GI tract time to heal. It helps the healing process, whether fasting or not, to take 4-10 grams of l-glutamine per day.
If you do decide to give IF a try, be sure to let me know how it works for you.
Cheers–
MRE
You might already know that twice-a-week IF is the norm for (traditional) Orthodox Christians. The Wed & Fri fasts start after dinner on Tue or Thu - and no meals are eaten until after 3 pm on Wed & Fri - and those are one or two small, vegan-no-oil meals. And of course, nothing by mouth after dinner on Saturday until after Liturgy on Sunday - usually around noon.
this is year-round - there are of course other times when the vegan-no-oil diet is followed for up to 40 days at a time (Great Lent, Nativity Fast, etc).
Hi Lisa–
Many religions have incorporated fasting for various lengths into their customs. A number of scientific articles have been generated from data collected from religious groups undertaking these fasts. In all cases (at least all the studies I’ve read) most health parameters improved during the fasting period.
Best–
MRE
I’m very interested — excited, even — about this! This is the way I used to eat back when I was a student. (Way too many years ago.) It was the way I felt best and had the best energy to meet all the demands of working full time, going to school, hiking all over campus, etc. I had discovered it was the best way to avoid hypoglycemia problems — no problem at all if I just ate once a day, at dinner. It was also very convenient. It’s amazing how much time and effort goes into planning our next feed! Much easier if it’s just once a day.
Eventually over the years I have succumbed to all advice that not eating several times a day could cause weight gain (starvation mode, etc.). Even though that really doesn’t make sense if you think it’s at all wise to try to eat like our ancestors.
Yesterday I exercised after not having eaten for quite a while — and felt much stronger than usual.
Hmmmmm…. I think I’ll try my old eating schedule. Do you think black coffee would mess up the fasting times?
Hi PeggyJo–
No, black coffee won’t mess it up. Go for it. I had black coffee throughout the entire time I was fasting. Same holds for tea or any other non-caloric beverage.
Keep me posted.
MRE
It sounds like some of us are really interested in implementing various versions of this and tracking our results. Any way for you to do some kind of informal data collection here?
Hi PeggyJo–
I think it would be great to do that. Let me think about how we could bring it about. I’m going to be talking to my web guy later today; I’ll ask him for some suggestions.
Best–
MRE
hmmmm, this sounds very familiar to how the Hellers started their Carbohydrate Addict saga.
I believe it was Mrs Heller that would fast until evening and then allow herself to eat a reward meal in the evening. She lost significant fat and thus the Carb Addict revolution began….so IF in another incarnation, eat once in 24 hrs….it worked for me 18 years ago, i wonder why i stopped. Probably because someone told me it was unhealthy…I’m going to try it again.
Hi Deb–
Actually followers of the Carbohydrate Addicts Diet ate very low carb throughout the day, then had a ‘reward meal’ at night, which was, basically, as much food as they could cram in their mouths over a one hour period. Since these folks were eating all day, they weren’t really on an IF.
Best–
MRE
Another great blog entry Michael. Thanks..
Like some others mentioned, I used to eat like this all the time. However, back then I would eat only once or twice every day and overeat on carbs. Lowering carbs would have made a world of difference.
I had pretty decent results with a PSMF-like approach and eating only 1000 kcals one day and overeating another day. However, my workouts would always be scheduled on the overeating days.
Back then I hadn’t thought of IF-regimen and tried to stick to 4-5 meals/day in the bb-fashion. This method would be tons easier.
The method seemed a bit confusing at first. To summarize :
day 1 : eat bf & lunch = eat before 6 pm
day 2: eat dinner = start eating after 6 pm
day 3: eat bf & lunch = eat before 6 pm
day 4: like day 2… rinse & repeat.
basically dinner-lunch-bf / - - - /
Hi Yvana–
You’ve got the scheduling correct. I should have put it that way in the post–it’s much easier to understand.
Thanks—
MRE
I’m trying to integrate this into my thinking and have a few questions.
I’ve been reading Dr. Berstein’s “Diabetes Solution” book and he talks about how overeating, even no carb food, can cause the body to release excess insulin and glucagon, due to the upper small intestine getting stretched. This makes sense from a paleo POV, since you would want to put on some fat every time you ate, even if you were gorging on mastadon meat.
It seems like gorging one day and then fasting the next would play havoc with BG over time in a modern world, where we can’t loll about after gorging ourselves. Could you not get a similar effect by eating small amounts ONLY when physically hungry?
I’ve lost weight in the past (and am losing some more now) this way. I eat enough to not be hungry and make sure I don’t stretch my stomach. If I’m only hungry once during the day, I only eat once. If I’m working hard, I may be hungry 4-5 times a day.
It seems like that would give you similar results without the insulin response. My blood pressure has gone down a lot since I started eating this way and my fasting BG has gone down (I’m not diabetic; I just monitor it). My BG has been very stable too.
What do you think?
BTW, food tastes MUCH better when you are physically hungry. You can even tell when you start to cross over into overeating, because the food starts to change flavor. You, of course, have to pay attention and not read or watch TV while eating.
Thanks for the great blog!
Hi Ryan–
The ’stretch’ reflex could conceivably cause a problem, but in all the studies I’ve read, glucose levels and insulin sensitivity improve. Apparently something corrective happens during the 24 hours in which one isn’t eating.
If you are a type II diabetic I would be most interested in learning how an If regimen works for you.
Best–
MRE
OK, the health benefits seem to be a given. My practical mind jumps to other, non-health related pluses. This would have to have a positive impact on the grocery bill as I doubt you would eat twice as much on non fasting days. If you aren’t restricting carbs as much, you could also eat more of cheaper higher carb veggies and whole grains. I love the idea of only having to do food prep and kitchen clean up every 2nd day. Think of what other worthwhile activities could take up that time!
Back to the health issues, after 3 years low carb, DH has much improved his health parameters, but would really like to get the weight and blood pressure down just a little more. Maybe this will do the trick, if I can convince him to give it a try.
Hi Sue–
I hadn’t considered the other virtues of every other day eating such as only having to clean the kitchen half as much.
If you can get DH to give it a go, make sure and let me know how it works.
Cheers–
MRE
Yes, I also remember that from the first edition or printing of the Carbohydrate Addicts book. It was not the diet they outlined as the program, but the way that Rachel Heller had initially discovered worked for her weight loss — eat just in the evening without paying too much attention to *what* was eaten.
I’m also doing a lot of thinking right now about why I stopped trusting my instincts and eating when, what, and how worked for me. Hmmmph!
Sounds absolutely fascinating! I lost 140 lbs low carb but it took me so long to do it, Mar 03 to Oct 05 and in the past year I gained about 12 lbs. definitely will give this a try and started today. So, I eat until 6 p.m. Then don’t eat again until Fri at 6 pm, One meal.Then eat all day, or until 6pm Sat and then not again until 6 pm and so on. Does that about cover it? I think I will stay pretty low carb, i feel better. Thanks again for a wonderful blog. I check every day to see what is new in Eadesville!
Hi Tess–
I’ll try to keep the news from Eadesville a little bit more up to date.
You’ve got the schedule down. I’ll copy the exact layout from one of your fellow commenters, Yvana, comments:
day 1 : eat bf & lunch = eat before 6 pm
day 2: eat dinner = start eating after 6 pm
day 3: eat bf & lunch = eat before 6 pm
day 4: like day 2… rinse & repeat.
basically dinner-bf-lunch/ - - - /
Please let me know how it works for you.
Cheers–
MRE
Hi Dr. Eades,
Gotta totally agree with you on this one. I’m on a zero carb diet (only eating from the animal kingdom, no veggies, starches, sugars, low-carb products, etc.) and I often go extended periods without anything to eat, without even tying really, especially if I happen to be busy. I’ve easily gone 24 hours without eating, up to 36 hours as well and I could easily go 48hrs if need be.
There’s only one reason to be hungry and that’s because of carbs in the diet and it’s fluctuations in your blood sugar, even minimal ones. No carbs=steady blood sugar levels=no hunger.
Hi Rob–
I think you’re right on the money. People who have never been on such a regimen don’t believe how unhungry they really are when they don’t eat carbs.
Thanks for commenting.
MRE
I’ve been really interested in this for quite some time. And I do believe there is a recent study done on humans over a 1 month period where they were fasted every other day, for the entire day and was shown to be beneficial healthwise though they didn’t get over the discomfort and crankiness on fasting days. At work now, see if I can pull it up later.
What about for someone that is into bodybuilding and maintaining or building an above average amount of muscle. Some research shows that a fairly steady supply of aminos need to be ingested regularly to build and/or maintain muscle while dieting. For example the fat police study showed that casein was better than whey, since casein was slower digested than whey, keeping a steady level of blood amino acids. The casein group lost more fat and built more muscle than the whey group because of this. Another study on boxers eating 2 vs. 6 meals a day showed more muscle maintenance on 6 meals, although protein intake was abysmally low and the study had some shortcomings, such as a poor measure of body comp.
Hi Pete–
Take a look at the reply to the comment from Fred Hahn; it will probably answer most of your questions.
Best–
MRE
Hi Dr. Eades,
When I was younger (high school age), I naturally did a sort of IF. I would go to school without breakfast, not eat lunch, and then gorge myself silly from 3-5PM when I came home. After that I was usually too busy with homework/activities to eat again before bed, so this cycle amounted to eating once a day. I have to say that during this period I was very slim, had good energy, no teenage acne, etc. My senior year I began eating lunch during the day and immediately gained weight and developed some acne.
I would be very interested in starting an IF regimen again, and have actually been toying with the idea for some time…I studied anthropology in college, so have been aware of IF for a few years now. The only obstacle is convincing my husband that I’m not crazy.
Thanks for all your insightful commentary on this post and others. If I do start IF I will take notes to share.
Hi Elizabeth–
Tell your husband that I did it and I’m certainly not crazy:)
Be sure to keep me posted.
Cheers–
MRE
I’m so hard to convince sometimes and I admit that it sounds intriguing. Now, I may have missed it but what about water? Even if paleo-men didn’t have anything to eat and were ‘forced’ to fast intermittently, are we to also assume that they didn’t visit a water hole at all during their ‘no-eating’ periods? Or maybe we are also like animals that hibernate (bears come to mind), which don’t really need water since it’s produced from continuous fat oxidation.
Just as a side note, a few years back there was a scientist that showed that he could extend the lifespan of the fruit fly up to 20 generations or so. Yeah, I know… flies aren’t men… but neither are rodents! Caloric restriction wasn’t what cause such extension of lifespan. Amazingly, at least in the case of the flies, what made them ‘not die’ was the removal of their eggs right after the females laid them. It seemed that the only purpose in the flies’ life was to procreate and preserve their kind. So, no eggs, no progeny… bad idea to die! The scientist then noticed that once they left the eggs, the flies actually died when they were expected too.
Although seemingly unrelated, I always remember this account when reading about life extension… particularly because I still haven’t seen studies in which caloric restriction added pieces to the telomeres (the tips of the human chromosome arms… I know you know these but for those who don’t I offer this visual) or, which is after all where ‘life span’ resides (of course in the genetic sense).
Perhaps when the diet is modified in some way, for example by going back to what has worked for us humans for millennia, doesn’t really expand anything in the true sense, but restores the rate at which we are suppose to age. It may sound just as semantics, but somehow, living longer and aging slowly it’s not the same, at least not to me.
Hi Gabe–
No, you didn’t miss anything about water; I didn’t mention it. When MD and I did our version of IF we drank water whenever we were thirsty and drank coffee and other non-caloric beverages as per our taste.
I would like to see the fruit fly study you wrote about. I’ve looked at a lot of longevity studies (including a lot using fruit flies) and I’ve never seen that one. Are you sure it was 20 generations?
Best–
MRE
Hi Doctor,
I enjoy reading your posts. I especially like how you picked apart Jane Brody’s article.
I tried IF for a few months earlier this year and I can attest to its efficacy. But I found it mentally unsustainable. I allowed myself weekends “off” but I still couldn’t maintain Mon-Fri, eating only dinner.
I’m definitely going to give your schedule a try. I’ve also jumped on the low-carb bandwagon, at least for lunch anyway. I can’t convince my wife to let me go all the way for dinner too!
Michael
PS I did allow myself coffee with honey and cream during my fasting days. It didn’t seem to adversely affect my weight loss, though I suspect the fat would come off a little quicker if I could stomach my coffee black.
Hi Michael–
I suspect that the IF regimen as we worked it out will be a lot more tolerable than the one meal per day IF that you did a while back. I would imagine that eating only once per day, everyday, would be a little tough.
Good luck in bringing your wife around. Keep me posted.
MRE
Hi Mike,
Interesting post! But a question . . . Somewhere in Protein Power you advise against skipping meals since fasting stimulates insulin. Doesn’t that apply here as well?
In general, the idea of doing Yom Kippur every other day is a little too post-dilettante for me. I would want more information on what are the benefits of IF beyond my current strategy of filling up my 50-60 gm/day carb allotment with nutrient dense vegetables and fruit.
Hi Chuck–
I would like to see the quote from Protein Power where we wrote that fasting stimulates the insulin response. If you can dig it up, send it my way. If I wrote it, I was wrong. Fasting definitely reduces insulin levels.
As I say to anyone who asks, if you’re doing fine on whatever regimen you are currently following, why change? I think going without food from time to time-whether it’s every other day or once a week or so–is a good thing and provides health benefits.
Cheers–
MRE
i have read a lot about this and have always wanted to try it but because i have tended toward hypoglycemia, i have hesitated.
my question is, if i should start to feel the manic ravenous crazy state that i can sometimes fall into, is it best to break the fast and try another day or gut it out. will the hypoglycemic body eventually adapt to the fasting. it sounds like this way of eating should eventually improve such a condition.
great article, the 6PM thing is genius, never occurred to me and makes it a lot easier. i will probably pick 8PM because i like to eat and watch my tv show. susan
Hi Susan–
I would probably try to gut it out until dinner on the fasting days. The hypoglycemic state should respond nicely. One of the most potent stimuli to feed is a rapid drop in blood sugar. If you’re not eating, the body makes plenty of blood sugar keeping levels from falling rapidly. So, once you get started you should do okay.
8 PM until 8 PM is fine if that works for you. I hope the TV show you’re watching is Low Carb CookwoRx
Let me know how you do.
Cheers–
MRE
I am in dr eades, I have stopped having diet sodas I was hoping maybe with this plan i can have a soda and still lose weight? Anyway I shall keep you posted on my progress.
sherry
Hi Sherry–
Good luck. Keep me posted.
MRE
I was thrilled to find this discussion and, as a Type 2, would be just as thrilled to see how IF would influence my BG readings. I’ve been reading on fasting in general and I firmly believe that the human body has a tremendous capacity to heal if it is given the chance. However, I am constantly seeing admonitions against diabetics fasting.
I have recently made quite a few lifestyle changes in an effort to get my BG under control, including a low carb diet, stopping smoking and exercise. I think I’ll give all of these changes a chance to “settle down” and will make the IF routine my fourth challenge.
I’ll let you know how it works out.
Hi BlueBrooke–
Good luck. Please do let me know how you do.
Cheers–
MRE
Mike its timely that you wrote this article. About three months ago I had a little Brain flash after reading about calorie restriction. Can’t remember who wrote it but the suggestion was that calorie restriction itself might not be generating the health benefits but perhaps it was the fact that caloric restriction makes you hungry and the being hungry sets of beneficial processes. For the last two months I have avoided breakfast altogether (black coffee only) and eaten only a very small lunch. A few slices of cold meat and maybe a kiwi fruit.(the equivalent of plucking a few berries or nuts) In the evenings I graze constantly. I have felt more energetic, sleep better, and have more time in the morning! It occurred to met that in paleo times no one was mucking around in the morning preparing food. Hunters were up and away just at dawn to take advantage of that time of day when nocturnal feeders and day feeders were about at the same time, thus increasing the opportunity for a kill. Much the same way we modern hunters hunt game! Not rocket science really. It is logical that our ancestors ate in the evening after dark when there was little else to do other than sleep and well…..
Cheers
Hi John–
I think you’re right on the money. I’m glad the regimen is working out for you.
Best–
MRE
Here in south eastern Mass. we have a wonderful family owned breakfast restaurant called “Percy’s.” Yankee Magazine calls it “Heaven on Earth,” and I agree. As my wife and I are the only lowcarbers we keep Percy’s a special occasion place. When we do go, we eat like the above mentioned Paleolithic hunters. We fill up on pancakes, omelet, corn beef hash, and it just goes on. We usually wont eat again until the next day, maybe a bit of cheese around 10pm. The next day, however, we are out of ketosis and we are constantly hungry, so keeping it lowcarb sounds right to me.
I can’t imagine going so long with out eating like on an IF plan. I LOVE eating lowcarb, I LOVE cooking lowcarb. I would miss eating like I would miss my wife if she was absent for 24 hours. IF might work, but I will gladly read about the results. Also, please post more often if you can. I can’t deal with the newspaper and need something to read during my breaks at work.
Thanks,
Dave
Hi Dave–
Looks like a lot of your fellow blog readers will be trying to IF. You can read about their results and live the IF life vicariously while you continue to gnosh on low-carb victuals to your heart’s content.
I’ll try to pick up the pace on my postings. It’s not that I don’t have anything to say, I just don’t always have the time to say it right.
Cheers–
MRE
Dr Eades, there’s a little group of us who’ve been toying with intermittent fasting for the past year or so, based on Dr Mattson’s research and ideas.
We generally eat either 1 large meal per day (usually Paleo), or compress all our meals into a 4-6 hour window.
Certainly works…I didn’t have any weight issues to begin with as I was already eating Paleo, but decided to start eating that way on a 6 week ICU rotation where we were severely understaffed (made life a lot easier). Despite already being lean, I became even leaner despite no longer having time for exercise, without losing any significant muscle mass.
There’s been a lot of discussion about the topic over the past year or so on the nutrition board at http://www.crossfit.com. One of the main contributors, Rob Wolff from crossfit norcal has written a lot about this way of eating, and could certainly provide you with feedback based on his and many others’ experience. I think he may have even worked with Cordain at some point. DeVany has also beein toying with the idea, but he emphasizes random fasts much more, which would be more in line with his ideas on the benefits of power laws in energy and metabolism patterns.
On an unrelated but similarly interesting issue, you were asked about whether cold water dips worked via the principle of hormesis (from your “Cordain picnic” post). There is in fact some evidence that they do. I have a paper that shows increased levels of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase in cold water swimmers compared to controls. There’s more out there, though in obscure and difficult to find papers. Let me know if you’re interested, I think I have some of the articles hidden somewhere in my laptop.
D
PS: If you have any of the references about heat-shock proteins and cold-water dips, I’d love to read them.
Hi David–
Glad to hear you’ve been doing so well on the IF regimen; most people I’ve encountered who have followed such a regimen really get into it and have the same experience you did.
As to the hormesis issue…hormesis is the situation in which a small dose of something (usually toxic; radiation, for example) prevents an untoward response from a larger dose. Animals given small doses of gamma radiation are later protected against larger doses of gamma radiation, i.e., they don’t develop cancers at as great a rate as those animals that weren’t given the initial small dose.
In terms of the cold water hormesis would mean that a small dose of cold water would protect one from the damaging effects of a prolonged stay in frigid water. I don’t know if that’s the case. What a sudden blast of cold water (or any extreme temperature change) does is increase the body’s production of heat shock proteins, which act as chaperones in the development of new protein. Increasing heat shock protein levels increases the body’s ability to deal with stress.
I would indeed be interested in seeing the articles on cold water immersion and increased endogenous anti oxidant production.
Best–
MRE
I have to tell you a story. Back in College (SUNY Stony Brook, Anthropology), I worked as a baker, baking donuts for a chain donut shop. My schedule was erratic, as I’d start work at 9 pm, work until 7 am, take a nap, commute to college in the afternoon, take another nap and so on. Around midnight, I’d go snitch some portions of meat. Bacon, ham, tuna, roast Beef, whatever. I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was eating very low carb. The fasting part occurred because if I thought I’d gained some weight I wouldn’t eat at all for one or two days.
For five years, I kept myself at 105 pounds by doing this. Looked great, felt great. The only thing I ever consumed at campus was coffee.
The funny thing is that if I succumbed to the temptation of a freshly fried doughnut, I was a mess for the rest of the night.
One of my favorite (off topic) stories is when an elderly couple came into the shop and asked about the “98% Fat Free” doughnuts. They had “a heart condition”. I told them that the donuts are fried in partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, and at the time (1986?), I had learned from my bio professor (Dr. Bob Love, great professor) that partially hydrogenated fats were just as ‘bad’ as saturated fats. That was the extent of the knowledge then, and I told them doughnuts were not good food. The couple left, and my boss popped up and told me he’d fire me if I ever turned away a customer like that again.
Now, after eating low carb for 2.5 years, I can honestly say that I’ve gotten most of that eating pattern back. Maybe I’ll have a can of sardines for brunch, but not much else until dinner. I am beginning to truly believe that Homo sapien sapien can exist on meat and fat alone.
Hi Karen–
Thanks for the stories of your life as a baker. I fear that I would have succumbed to the freshly baked donuts way more often than you did.
Like you, I believe that we humans can do just fine (better than fine, actually) on a diet of meat and fat alone.
Best–
MRE
Great post!
I’ve been Paleo for over a year, and I’m a recent zero-carber. Since going carnivore, I’ve found I naturally eat less often - usually brunch around noon and then dinner around 8 or 9. Prior to this I was eating (low-carb) every few hours to fight hypoglycemia, but since zero carb I’ve had zero hypoglycemic symptoms, terrific energy, etc.
Anyway, I’m lucky enough to have a very flexible schedule, so I’m thinking I could make this even easier by shifting the magic hour to 2pm. That way on the ‘eat after 2pm’ days, a decent sleep-in until noon would have that day not feel like a fast day at all, and on ‘eat before 2pm’ days, breakfast and lunch would be eaten. I’d still have to skip that dinner, but since I’m already naturally lasting from noon til 8 or 9pm, eating at 2pm would probably see me through until I was asleep, dreaming about my 2pm brunch!
If I try it, I’ll let you know how it goes. : )
Hi Paleogirl–
Please do let me know how it goes. I’m keenly interested.
Best–
MRE
Hi Dr. Eades,
What about introducing more randomness to it? ie putting about 1-3 fasting days (no eating from 7am-7am) randomly into a week, or even just one fasting day randomly in a week? Another idea would be to do yours and MD’s schedule randomly, ie 3 days on, 3 days off, 2 days on, 1 day off, 4 days on, 5 days off, etc, etc. This sort of random eating pattern is something Art Devany is a big fan of, as it is likely most closely related to how our paleo ancestors ate.
I think I will try that (especially if my wife agrees) and I’ll let you know how it goes. I’ve never skipped more than one meal in my whole life. I’m an avid exerciser and can have about 4% body fat, carbs or no carbs, without a whole lot of effort, so I’ve always been a little afraid not to eat.
Anways, we’ll see how it goes….By the way, I’m glad to have read some of the above posts. I have a three year old, and have been known to do the old “You can get down from the table after you finish eating” thing before. It’s tough, if there ever was a wannabe vegan, it’s him. He’d prefer to just eat mango 3 times a day.
Daniel
Hi Daniel–
I don’t see any reason that the random approach wouldn’t work. In fact, it probably is more in keeping with our Paleolithic past.
Let me know how you do. And don’t worry about you’re kid. I did the old “you can’t leave until you’ve cleaned your plate” myself and they don’t seem to be any the worse for wear. I’m going to revise my stance with the grandchildren, however.
Best–
MRE
Thanks for the insightful blog post Dr Eades
I eat only one low carb meal during the day during the week. On weekends I eat both days low carb.
I have been doing this on and off for a few years and whenever I do, I lose weight and I have more energy (in fact, I did the ‘eat one meal a day’ regimen eating non low carb a few years ago and also lost weight and had more energy).
Unfortunately I haven’t noticed that it has an effect on my eczema (which is rather chronic). I am curious to know if there low carb foods that I should avoid to lessen inflammation? I eat mostly meats, fish, eggs, spinach, broccoli and cauliflower. Cheese, cream and milk are present but not in huge quantities.
Hi Sam–
Glad to hear that you’ve done well on the IF regimen.
As to the eczema…I’ve read a couple of studies in which researchers have put people with allergic problems on a diet of meat only for a while. You might want to try that for a week or so to see if the eczema gets better. If it does, then start adding one food at a time back in until you get a flare up and you will know what caused it. If going on the full meat diet doesn’t help, then you’ve probably got an eczema of non-allergic origin.
Best–
MRE
Regarding the orthodox christian fast - you don’t eat animal products. As far as I know you can have oil as its not of animal origin.
The fast sounds excellent - I must give it a go. Perhaps it may help my hashimotos.
Hi Sue–
The IF regimen should improve any kind of autoimmune disorders Hashimoto’s included.
Keep me posted on how you’re doing with it.
Best–
MRE
Dr. Eades, this subject more than any other in your blog has piqued my interest. I’m going to show it to my husband and let him read it and see how he feels about partaking of this regimen. It really sounds doable. You mentioned that drinking water, coffee, et al is OK during the IF regimen, but what’s you’re opinion if one were to partake of whey protein drinks/shakes during the fast part of the schedule? Would this be considered a meal or as a liquid? Would drinking a protein shake during the fasting portion (say, during the BF or Lunch) defeat the whole purpose of this exercise?
Hi Marlene–
The only things you can eat (or drink) during the fast portion of the day are food without caloric content. If you eat calories, whether they be from whey or anything else, you really aren’t on a fast; you would be following a low calorie diet. What apparently makes this regimen work is the period of time one goes without food. Adding a little food during those periods would defeat the purpose.
Let me know how you do if you try.
Best–
MRE
Perhaps I missed it.
I know you mentioned coffee as a beverage, and realize, if I remember reading correctly (previously) that you don’t eliminate caffeine, so I am wondering if a person could make a beverage by freezing coffee in ice cube trays, and then shredding it in a blender - having a sort of iced coffee/frappichino (sp?) effect, with no particularly adverse consequences. This, of course, would still involve it remaining black, unsweetened, but would give variety.
I guess perhaps the question should be more directed to temperature - is there a benefit to hot or cold, or is it a personal preference?
Hi Constance–
I think the hot or cold is a personal preference. If there are no calories it doesn’t matter if it’s boiling hot or freezing cold.
Let me know how it works for you.
MRE
Sorry to post another question Mike on the same subject and thanks for the answer BTW about NOT losing muscle mass by adopting an IF approach to eating. I’ll monitor this with my $1750 Bioanalogics body comp device and let you know!
Q: Does IF include all beverages? Coffee, water, etc?
Hi Fred–
No, beverages can be included during fating periods as long as they are non-caloric. Black coffee, water, club soda, etc.
Best–
MRE
Dr M Just curious-have you ever had a post with more comments? If so which one? If, of course, you can remember with al the thousands of words you have written! This one has been really interesting.
Hi Tess–
I was just asking myself this same question as I type out the responses to the 23 or so more that have stacked up while I was out today. It is indeed the post that has garnered the most comments by far.
Best–
MRE
Dr. Eades, I do believe you have solved my budget problem.
Hi Lyndsey–
I’m here to serve
Best–
MRE
Mike, I’ll have to dig into my files. I’m pretty sure this came out between 2000-2002. I was still in Sweden when I read this and the article may not have survive the relocation!
As for the number of generations, I’m pretty sure that was the number (I was also amazed), but now that you’re asking, I have this ‘fly’ in my brain that wants to make sure the facts are right… so now I must find that study again!!!
In the mean time, I found a ‘jewel’ for you that I’m sending by e-mail; and article on IF and longevity in Drosophila written in 1928.
Thanks, Gabe. I’ll keep an eye out for it.
MRE
Hi Dr. Eades,
I belong to a LC support forum and some of us there, after reading your blog, have decided to give IF a try. Some of us have already posted comments here. We started a support thread (http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=309675&page=1&pp=15), where you or anyone else interested, can follow our progress, if you are so inclined.
Cathy
Hi Cathy–
I’ll keep an eye on it. Thanks for the heads up. Wish everyone good luck from me.
MRE
I lost 85 of 100 lbs using a variant of the techniques outlined here. (I’m 5′10″)
Basically, I controlled caloric intake so each day was +/-200 calories of a 1200 calorie baseline. (ie, Day 1 = 1200 cal, Day 2 = 1000 cal, Day 3 = 1400 cal.) I went from 255 lbs to 170 lbs over a 1.5 year timespan w/a slight increase in exercise. The loss occurred between age 17 and 19. I’m now age 52 and my weight has varied +/- 5 lbs over that period until recently. (I lost another 15 lbs switching to a lower carb regime over the last 2 years due to IGT dx. Total loss is 100 lbs.)
I’ve been accepted to the National Weightloss Registry and am happily filling out a whole bunch of surveys.
Hi Steve–
Make sure to tell the bozos at the National Weightloss Registry that your maintaining on a low-carb diet. They’ll hate it.
Congrats on your success.
MRE
Dr Eades Sir..this is scandalous.
I put it to you Sir that suggesting that we go without our victuals for some part of the day is an outrageous claim.
I shall consult the lawyer i do not have.
Nice one Brother..thanks the effort.
Hi Simon–
I was beginning to worry. This is the post you’ve been whining for and I didn’t hear from you for almost 36 hours.
Glad you enjoyed it.
Best–
MRE
Dr. Eades,
Art Devany has mentioned several times that 15 hours with no food is all it takes to get the benefits of intermittent fasting. I’ve looked but can’t find anything in the literature that supports that time period. In your next article on fasting could you address this? I’ve tried it and it’s really not that hard to do. I eat dinner on one day and then just skip breakfast the next day and I don’t eat anything in between.
Thanks,
David
Hi David–
I don’t know where Art DeVany got his info on the 15 hours; maybe from a paper I haven’t read. The authors of the study I quoted in the post didn’t really even IF; they simply consumed fewer calories on alternate days. I don’t know if 24 hours is a magic number or not, but it seems pretty easy to schedule that way.
Best–
MRE
Dr. Eades,
My question regarding this topic:
I see on many low carb boards the topic of “starvation mode.” There are a lot of opinions out there that your body shifts into this mode if you don’t eat regularly. I have also seen lots of eating plans that want you to eat small meals throughout the day. I think this is just one of those thoughts that is repeated over and over and people begin to think it is a fact.
What is your opinion?
Hi Amy–
I posted on this sometime in the past. There is a ’starvation response’ that kicks in after one goes without eating for a day or so. Insulin goes down, glucagon goes up, fat is converted to ketone bodies, which are burned for energy in many tissues in place of blood sugar, protein is converted to glucose to be used by those tissues that can’t use ketone bodies. That, in a nutshell, is the starvation response. Everything that happens is good. Insulin goes down: good. Blood sugar levels go down and stabilize: good. Many tissues turn to fat and ketone bodies for energy: good. The only bad thing that happens in the starvation response is the loss of protein (often from muscle) to make glucose.
The studies I posted on previously showed that the starvation response can be initiated by restricting carbohydrates. It’s not the lack of food in general that initiates the response; it’s the lack of carbohydrate. So, if one reduces carbohydrate intake all the good parts of the starvation response kick in while the protein in the diet serves to be the substrate for the conversion to glucose, leaving the muscle and other protein structures intact.
Hope this helps.
MRE
Mike,
If I have it correct the timing you used was:
Day 1: eat until 6:00 pm
Day 2: eat nothing but dinner around 6:00 pm
Day 3: eat breakfast and lunch nothing past 6:00 pm (if your lunch was at noon you could stop there as well?)
Day 4: fast until 6:00 pm
repeat etc..
thanks!
Randy
Hi Randy–
You got it.
Let me know how you do.
MRE
I made it 24 hours just fine! It wasn’t that hard. For the last 6 weeks, I’ve been eating near purist level PP and < 30g carbs. I’ve lost 12 pounds (with 85 to go). I did 1hr weight training this morning and then ate breakfast after that.
I will try the suggested rotation over the next week or so. I have a blog about my weightloss journey so I will keep that updated. I’m a type 2 diabetic and my blood sugar has been stable at 98 for the last several weeks, but I want to get it to 83. Hopefully this will do it. Thanks Dr. Mike.
Hi Joyce–
Good luck. Keep me posted. I hope it works for you.
MRE
I too did this in school and nicely maintained my weight. I’d have no solids 1-3 days in a row. I found that if I went past 3 days I’d start to feel it, but 1-3 were no problem.
I’ve also used a fast to get back on LC after a binge.
I am going to seriously consider this.
Thanks for all the great posts!
Hi Alcinda–
Thanks for the kind words. Keep me posted on your progress.
Best–
MRE
Dr Mike
I just reread your answer to my comment about supplements and realized that it doesn’t take into account the mag citrate that I take every night before retiring. Since it’s just one mineral and no calories, will it interfere with the fast?
Hi LC–
Don’t worry about the mag citrate. It, like most other vitamin and mineral supplements, is non-caloric.
MRE
As an avid weightlifter and general physical preparedness buff I have always been concerned about not getting enough fuel for the fire. At the same time, while strong and aerobically fit, I do not have my body fat where I want it. I’m starting this IF today with your parameters doc (6 pm to 6 pm). I just realized what hurts me is when I try and get food every two hours every day is that I tend to overdo it especially if I down a few too many carbs. I actually do well during periods of non eating. I feel more alert and less cranky. Mentally if I know I can eat at some point, even if is within a window, I can hold on. Well here I go, I’ll keep you posted, especially with regards to my strength training progress and body weight. I’m currently 230 lbs with about 16% BF using those home calipers…
thanks for the inspiration in the article
Randy
Hi Randy–
Good luck. I think you will find it pretty easy. And the meal at 6 PM tastes really good.
Best–
MRE
i’m starting tonight! one more question:
on your eating day, do you eat all day long or eat a couple very high calorie meals -or does it matter?
it’s hard for me to eat that much at one time. is it important to get double the calories in, i mean, if one ends up not eating that much more than they regularly do on an eating day, is that going to reduce the benefits. is the feasting part as important as the fasting?
Hi Susan–
You can eat however you want on your eating days. Lots of little meals or a few big meals or big meals interspersed with little meals. You don’t have to try to eat two days worth of calories in the one day–just eat until you’re not hungry and leave it at that. What’s more important than how many meals you eat on eating days is that you NOT eat any meals on fasting days. That’s what makes the process work.
Keep me posted.
MRE
Hi Dr. Eades! This is Robb Wolf from Chico CA. I’m a friend/former student of Prof. Cordain’s. We have been looking at intermittent fasting for high-level athletes for over a year in our strength & conditioning practice. We have published some of these results in our magazine the Performance Menu (www.performancemenu.com). Issues 6, 16 and 18 concern intermittent fasting. One may download one of these issues for free.
Robb
Hi Robb–
Thanks for passing along the info for all. I’ll take a look.
Best–
MRE
I’d reiterate what others have said above with reference to Art Devany - he has been promoting intermittent fasitng for a while as part of his paleo approach.
http://www.arthurdevany.com/archives/2005/05/intermittent_fa.html
Hi Chris–
Thanks for the link.
Best–
MRE
Wow, lots of comments on this one! I’m going to give it a try. Back in my young and skinny days when I lived by myself, I kind of did a variation of this. Never ate dinner except when going out during the weekends and that more or less might have been my only meal of the day. What changed for me was getting married to a guy who is firmly entrenched in the concept of three meals a day and believes that some sort of dessert should be a part of at least two of them. Strangely enough, I never really noticed the weight I was gaining and when I think back then to my complaints of my clothes mysteriously shrinking, I have to wonder what universe I was living in that I didn’t see what was going on. What brought it all to a grinding halt was when about two years later in a space of a week, three different people asked me when the baby was due and I wasn’t pregnant. Heh, that’s when the mist cleared from my eyes and I realized I was fat. I started exercising, cut out all the desserts, ate the usual low-fat crud and did lose a decent amount of weight but then I got stuck about 10 pounds away from my goal and nothing changed that for several years. Then one day I stumbled onto a LC website which in turn led me to Gary Taubs’ Fat Lie article which then led me to several other sites and articles and then ultimately to “Protein Power” and the rest is history. Giving IF a try seems like the next logical step for me to take.
I do have one question, though. I only drink one cup of coffee a day in the morning and it has cream in it as I simply cannot stomach the stuff straight (same goes for black tea.) Is this ok or should I look for an alternative source of caffeine on those off mornings? Thanks!
Hi Esther–
Well, I would tell you to just buck up and be a man and drink the coffee black. Except for the fact that MD is the same way; she can’t (won’t) drink her coffee without cream. I’ve tried without success for years to get her to see the light. When we did the IF, she drank her coffee with cream on her fasting days, so even if I won’t, she will give you dispensation to do the same. (She drank one or sometimes two cups of coffee with cream in the morning, but no more than that.)
Good luck. Keep me posted.
MRE
Hi Mike, this first part of my comment is off topic, and I hope you and everyone else forgives me for doing this.
PPLP was my introduction to diet and autoimmune response. From there, I’ve devoted a lot of time to investigating autoimmune disorders and the association it has with gluten and casein intolerance.
For the person with ankylosing spondylitis, and the person with chronic eczema, totally eliminating gluten from my husband’s diet caused total remission of his ankylosing spondylitis. He’s been flare-up free for 6 years, and his systemic inflammation is gone. He also had chronic eczema associated with his AS disorder. He hasn’t had eczema now for the same length of time. He also hasn’t had a migraine headache since he stopped eating gluten. I have corresponded with many people that have also experienced remission of their autoimmune disorders when they eliminated gluten from their diet. Some people have had to also eliminate casein from their diet to experience remission from their autoimmune disorders.
There has to always be one in the crowd that has to be different….I think I have already been doing IF. I’ve happily eaten only one meal a day (dinner) for the past 4-5 years, after switching to strict low carb over 7 years ago. But it hasn’t helped in weight loss or improvement of insulin resistance or Phase 1 insulin response. According to my fasting glucose numbers, I’m still heading down the road to diabetes. I do have PCOS. I am not diabetic yet, but it seems I can’t stop the progression to diabetes. And, I have acquired serious difficulties in cognitive function (memory loss and inability to concentrate and focus) and my energy level has dropped tremendously. These symptoms suggest hypothyroidism, but according to my thyroid tests, my thyroid function is normal.
For me, I don’t see how doing “IF” is going to do anything different to improve my health if only eating once a day for the past 4-5 years hasn’t helped! I certainly don’t know yet if eating one meal a day for 4-5 years has increased my longevity…..
I don’t mean to be a cynic or be negative about it all. It’s just that my experience with low carb and IF (if one meal a day is considered to be IF) hasn’t produced the expected “benefits” for me. Going back to high carb low fat isn’t the answer either, as that will greatly hasten the progression to diabetes!
Perhaps IF only benefits those people that do not do low carb in the first place, and those that still eat grains and gluten.
Hi Georgette–
Thanks for the discourse on anti-inflammatory disorders and gluten and casein. It is very true that both of these substances can (and often do) cause serious autoimmune problems through the process of molecular mimicry.
As to your weight-loss and diabetic history, I find it all very puzzling. The low-carb diet, especially a low-carb diet taken in IF structure, is the gold standard for treatment of diabetes and obesity in a system that is operating properly. (It would seem to be obvious if someone has diabetes or obesity that the system isn’t operating properly, but that isn’t the case. Diabetes and/or obesity are responses of a properly operating system to the incorrect diet) If the regimen doesn’t work, then the system must be malfunctioning. Were I you, I would seek out a competent endocrinologist for a thorough evaluation. In reading your history a number of problems come to mind–cyclical Cushing’s, pituitary adenoma, a glucagon-secreting tumor (usually benign), multiple endocrine adenopathy (MEA), just to name a few–all of which can be tracked down and treated by someone who knows what he or she is doing.
I hope you ferret out the problem. Keep me posted.
MRE
Hi Dr. Eades,
I will pass along your good luck wishes on our thread. Several people have successfully made it through their first fasting day.
I started my fasting tonight, so I hope tomorrow I can manage to make it through the remaining 24 hr. I was planning on making a batch of Power Muffins (cranberry, after reading MD’s blog the other day) this weekend. Now I know I will have to wait until the fast is done before I attempt this. I think they would be too difficult to resist after smelling them baking.
One question about supplements. I have decided to take all my supplements at night now (before the fasting begins or just after it ends), instead of taking some in the morning and some at night. The reason for this is that the cod liver oil (was 1 tsp 2x day, which is 90 calories total) and krill oil (2 capsules in am), have calories. I’m not sure if the vitamin E has calories. Does this make sense, in terms of not having any calories during the fasting period?
Thanks again,
Cathy
Hi Cathy–
I don’t think the minuscule number of calories in fish oil/krill oil is going to foul anything up with the IF. Were I you, I would take them whenever most convenient. When MD and I did our various versions of the IF it never occurred to us to change our supplement regimen.
Best–
MRE
In a previous blog, you suggest eating less than 100 grams of carb a day to stay in some degree of ketosis.
http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/archives/2006/02/in_going_throug.html
If you eat every other 24 hours, would that suggested maximum carb intake stay the same (100 grams during the non-fasting period, 0 during the fasting)?
Along the same lines, if I eat a multivitamin that’s meant to be taken twice a day, should I double the dose during the fasting period, or keep the doses the same?
Hi imsovain–
The virtue of IF is that one doesn’t have to worry so much about counting carbs, calories or anything else. The every other day nature of the thing obviates all that. If you want to stay on the same low-carb regimen as usual, just stick with the 100 grams per day. You won’t have to worry about whether or not you’re in ketosis on the fast days–you will be.
Take the supplements on your regular schedule as if you weren’t IFing.
Best–
MRE
she drank her coffee with cream on her fasting days, so even if I won’t, she will give you dispensation to do the same.
That one had me laughing out loud. I’m weird with my coffee, viz. add lots of stuff like hazelnut butter and/or shredded coconut.
But now a few more questions. You’ve already addressed the muscle loss Q. Yet, from the literature I’ve read, I vividly remember that 2 meals are very important. 1. breakfast for starting up metabolism and make one lose fat more easily. 2. dinner for retaining muscle mass. So, I’m hesitant to cut out either one of them, will start with 2 meals/day every 12 hrs at 10 am /10pm first to ‘test’ the waters.
Second Q: how much does metabolism slow down?
From my private experience I know that I’d lose weight very rapidly in the first week of cutting out calories and then I’d stall completely.
From the various bodybuilding-related literature a 20% calorie restriction seems to be the only real sustainable one to produce ongoing fat loss. Fasting for 24 hrs would make it harder to eat enough, isn’t it. Eating several meals/day on the non-fasting days would indeed make things more easy.
Third Q: I’d assume/presume that it’d be the best strategy to work out after having had 2 meals like working out after breakfast rather than at the end of a fast? Why would some people do it before? Growth hormone output as suggested in Natural Hormone Enhancement by Faigin doesn’t seem to be as important as it is said to be.
Hi Yvana–
Metabolic rate is more correlated to body weight than anything else. A number of studies have been done with subjects in metabolic chambers, and just about all have shown that the subject’s weight pretty much established their metabolic rates, not other factors such as meal timing, etc. So, if you lose weight, you decrease metabolic rate.
There is a thermic effect of food.