Get StartedExplores the practice of fasting and its role in longevity, improved insulin sensitivity, and brain function. Delve into different fasting methods, their practical applications in daily life, and the scientific backing from studies and potential future medical endorsements.
When I was at MIT, there was a study that was done about the people that were above the age of 100 in Japan. And I think the one commonality was, yeah, they spent time with one another, but they all practiced some sort of fasting, which was super weird. World leaders from history, all of them fast. And so there's like a study done of Vladimir Putin, David Petraeus, and a few successful business owners, and they all fast. Right. So there's this huge talk about fasting. And what is your take on this? Right. This whole kind of phenomenon outside of like the bodybuilding and performance view, fasting actually can be quite useful if you just look at it from a longevity view, because when there's no food intake, your body kind of shifts gears. It's not about just about shedding fat. It's really just a period of like an overhaul. Think of it as like your body's maintenance mode, right? It's kind of tidying up, fixing up what's broken, renewing itself. Now, when you're not digesting food, it can divert more energy towards those, those items while they are tidying up or what I like to call the process of autophagy, where they're breaking down senescent cells or cells that aren't functioning as appropriately. Recycling them, they tap into your fat reserves for energy. During this time, it allows it to focus on other things. And what we've noticed in certain studies have looked at individuals who fast, they tend to have better insulin sensitivity, reduced inflammation, and even enhanced brain function. But the key thing is it allows your body to utilize fat for fuel efficiently. From what you've seen though, is fasting something like you can do? Is it like a long term tactic? So when I think of fasting, I think more of like Fasting windows, right? When you think about it that way, I think it's very doable. It's not about starving, it's about strategic timing. Making sure that you eat within a certain window and then you fast for the rest of the day. This may not be the best for someone who's entirely performance oriented, an endurance athlete, someone that is, you know, preparing for like a bodybuilding competition. For the average individual who's just trying to live longer and be healthier, it can work quite well. And there's lots of different fasting mimicking diets 23 1 where you eat within one hour. Some people abide by 24 where they fast for 20 hours and eat for four. I found the easiest one is the 16 hour fast, where you limit your food intake to an eight hour timeframe each day with two to three meals. So it usually involves having breakfast, lunch, and early dinner. Maybe you have breakfast at nine. You might have lunch at 12 and then you have your dinner at 5pm and then you just fast from 5 till 9 the next day. Food can mean different things to different people. For some it's fuel, for others it's comfort or part of their family dynamic. And so that's why I tell patients to work their diet around their family schedule. If being there and eating dinner with your kids is key, maybe try just doing like skipping breakfast and doing lunch and then a snack and dinner and eating to stay within that 8 hour window. Basic question here though, right? Is fasting though, is it recommended by medical professionals? Because like no doctor had ever said, Hey, look. You know, I fast, right? You should fast, right? The National Institute on Aging has recently brought their findings on fast mimicking diets to the FDA's attention, and it's likely that FDA approval of it as a viable diet plan is going to happen. The lead investigator, Walter Longo, he wrote a book called Longevity Diet. It was an excellent book that kind of discusses the benefits of intermittent fasting. describes the diet as like a body reset tool and mentioned that there's stem cell driven renewal and rejuvenation across many organ systems in addition to significant growth hormone release. Whereas it's not established as a diet plan presently that a conventional position would offer, it does seem like it's going to occur soon in the future. In this particular article, he actually discusses his findings with the, what he calls the periodic diet, which is essentially a fasting mimicking diet. Basically the upshot was that they did animal studies and a pilot clinical trial in mice. They found that fasting mimicking diets or FMDs promoted hippocampal neurogenesis. That's a portion of your brain lowered IGF 1 levels. Brain growth. Brain cell growth. No effing way. It definitely has some, some benefit for sure. Remember one size does not fit all in terms of diets. One method that's effective for one individual might not be suitable for another. And as you become more conscious of your dietary needs, it's important to tailor your approach to align with your personal body's requirements and your objectives and discover a strategy that's most effective for you. It's really a trial and error deal. I always recommend to consult with the healthcare provider. So that's all for today's video. There's more to come our way and we'll see you next time.
