Many of us have thought of ways to be healthier and then would have tried some google searches. May be even tried exercising but even that routine could not be followed for more than a few weeks.

What about superfoods like avocado, olive oil, replacing sugar with maple syrup, avoiding ultra-processed food like bread, avoiding junk, keeping ourselves hydrated; these all have made a difference. It is a superb step forward, Well Done!

The thing is whatever is possible for you, you do it. No need to get tensed over doing it all.

But let’s be honest, we always had doubts about a healthy diet, fasting, vegan and much more.

I will try to clear many things here, as I have been trying to make sense of all the information we get on the internet, always being suspicious of what has been proven scientifically and what is not. So stay tuned for my longevity series.

Fasting vs CR

Calorie restriction - just enough food to function in healthy ways and no more. Therefore, a complete restriction on calories can be termed fasting.

Calorie restriction without malnutrition, or CR, leads to a longer and healthier life.

This makes sense. It engages our survival mechanism, telling our bodies to do what should be done when it’s under attack, which is to boost cellular defences, keep organisms alive during times of adversity, ward off disease and deterioration and hence, slow down ageing.

Why fasting?

Fasting is a trigger that puts in motion a chain of reactions in our body which will eventually lead us to live longer.

Okay, how? Well, biologically speaking, lower levels of mutations in IGF-1 ( insulin-like growth factor 1 ) and the IGF-1 receptor gene are associated with lower rates of not just death and but also diseases in all sorts of life forms.

In one study, over the course of just three months, those who maintained the “fasting mimicking” diet ( which has been described in below section ) lost weight, reduced their body fat, and lowered their blood pressure too. Perhaps most important though the participants had lower levels of IGF-1 hormone.
As given in “Lifespan: Why we age and why we don’t have to” book by David Sinclair

So you know, even if fasting for you is not a routine yet but instead it has been or will be irregular, it will still make a huge difference on your body.

In short term, I have observed myself being more energetic after breaking fast, even my fitness band agrees, those sleep times are always one of the best in terms of their quality.

Various types of fasting:

  • The 16:8 diet: Popularly called Intermittent fasting, it is a method where you are skipping breakfast and having a late lunch. So from the previous night till the next day’s lunch, you should have spent 16 hours without food. It can be tweaked to your needs too, think about the 15:9 diet, as long as you reach 12+ hours without food each day, you are good.

  • The 5:2 diet: Eat 75 percent fewer calories for two days every week.

  • Eat Stop Eat: If you’re feeling a bit more adventurous, you can try skipping food a couple of days a week or go hungry for an entire week every quarter.

  • Fasting mimicking: Eat a normal diet most of the time but turn to a significantly restricted diet consisting primarily of vegetable soup, energy bars, and supplements for five days each month.

The permutations of these models are many. So the choice is yours.