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One of the hottest trends for a while in health these recent years has been intermittent fasting, which is associated with weight loss, focus, and longevity. Intermittent fasting may seem complicated or even extreme at first, but once you understand the basics it’ll be easier for you to determine if this is something that will be good for you to do.
What Is Intermittent Fasting?
Intermittent fasting is not a traditional diet. It does not focus on specific foods, but rather on the timing of meals. Intermittent fasting is the practice of cycling between periods of eating and not eating (fasting) with limited to no caloric intake. You can drink water and calorie-free beverages (like plain tea or black coffee) during your fasting period.
One example of intermittent fasting is the 16:8 method, where you fast for 16 hours, then eat within an 8-hour window. Another example is the 12:12 method, where you fast for 12 hours and eat within a 12-hour time frame. For many college students, this will already be the case when they do nothing but fast overnight without making any changes to their eating habits.
What Happens in the Body?
To understand why researchers are interested in researching intermittent fasting, it helps to understand how the body consumes energy.
When the body takes in food, the food is converted into glucose, which is our body’s immediate source of energy. Once the body runs out of glucose, it stores the excess amount in the liver and muscles as glycogen. Once glucose has been depleted during fasting, the body will use up the stored glycogen until those stores are low; therefore, the body will change to breaking down fat for energy, producing ketones, which is a by-product of fat breakdown, to use as energy in the brain.
Metabolic switching is the term used to describe this process, which is a significant part of the research being conducted on intermittent fasting.
To learn more about the metabolism process and how your body takes energy from food and uses it, I recommend reading my previous article Metabolism Explained: How Your Body Turns Food Into Energy
Potential Benefits
Intermittent fasting has been associated with controlling body weight through reducing caloric consumption overall. Additionally, it has been shown to help increase insulin sensitivity, so that the body becomes more effective at utilising insulin (the hormone responsible for controlling blood glucose). Increased insulin sensitivity, in turn, may lower the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
To learn more about insulin production and diabetes, feel free to check out my previous article: Diabetes Explained: Types, Causes, and Management
Moreover, there is some evidence that fasting is beneficial to increasing autophagy (a type of cell’s cleaning itself). Through the use of autophagy, cells can function properly and efficiently by removing damaged components from their cell. Researchers are currently evaluating how fasting affects the brain, including an increase in the amount of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which is a protein that supports growth and survival of nerve cells. However, a lot of this research is still in the exploratory stages, especially in younger populations.
Risks and Limitations
Intermittent Fasting is not necessarily a good choice for every person; particularly teenagers, as they are still growing and require regular amounts of energy and nutrients. If an individual restricts their eating window excessively, they may find it difficult to reach proper amounts of protein, vitamins, and minerals for their body.
Fatigue, lack of focus, and irritability are all common problems associated with restricted eating windows and can negatively impact academic performance. Intermittent fasting may also have a negative impact on an individual’s eating habits. When an individual adheres to strict schedules, they may find themselves developing unhealthy eating patterns, such as excessive meal skipping or overeating during their fasting period.
For some people, these patterns may contribute to disordered eating. Therefore, intermittent fasting is not typically recommended for those who have a history of disordered eating or certain medical conditions.
Conclusion
Overall, intermittent fasting might provide benefits for certain individuals, however, it isn’t a requirement for healthy living. Students tend to do better when their eating habits are more regular and well-balanced than when following a pattern of intermittent fasting. Rather than relying on a specific diet, the quality of nutrition consumed, how often people get exercise, sleep patterns, and how well they deal with stress all contribute to someone’s overall health more than intermittent fasting alone.
Having the ability to understand the research behind trends such as this one will enhance someone’s ability to critique and understand health issues as opposed to just believing commonly accepted norms are accurate.
If you are interested in more clear and student focused health science content, consider subscribing to the OsmoHealth Journal newsletter. New articles are published regularly to help you build real understanding of important topics.
References
- Mayo Clinic. (n.d.). Intermittent fasting: What is it, and how does it work?https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/expert-answers/intermittent-fasting/faq-20441303
- Healthline. (n.d.). Intermittent fasting 101: The ultimate beginner’s guide. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/intermittent-fasting-guide
- Johns Hopkins Medicine. (n.d.). Intermittent fasting: What is it and how does it work? https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/expert-qa/intermittent-fasting-what-is-it-and-how-does-it-work
- Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto. (n.d.). Intermittent fasting shows similar benefits to traditional dieting, weight loss study finds. https://temertymedicine.utoronto.ca/news/intermittent-fasting-shows-similar-benefits-traditional-dieting-weight-loss-study-finds
- National Center for Biotechnology Information. (2013). Effects of intermittent fasting on health, aging, and disease. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3680567/
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