The Health Benefits of Fasting.

Hello Everyone,
Happy Ramadan to our muslim brothers and sisters currently engaging in the spiritual exercise. Amidst other things, one of the requirements of ramadan is intensive fasting from dusk to dawn. Also, our christian brothers and sisters just recently completed lent which also involves fasting. This goes to show that most world religions see fasting as an important exercise to improve physical and spiritual clarity.
Medically also, fasting has been used for thousands of years as a medical therapy to help the body detoxify and rejuvenate from various health problems.

Photo Credit: pinterest.

Medical benefits of Fasting.

• Fasting gives the body time to rest - a great amount of energy is needed for digesting food. During fasting, The digestive organs have a break from this function and can save this extra energy.
• Helps body to heal and regenerate : the extra energy saved resting from digestion can be channeled to healing and regenerating the body.
• Helps prevent extra toxins from entering the body.
• Expels toxins from the body: as the liver has to break down and metabolise all substances including stored toxins like pesticides and other chemicals.
• Heightened sense of awareness including clarity of mind and spirit.

Types of fasting:

• Water fast: here people abstain from food and drink only water for a specific period.
• Fasting from food and drink.
• Juice fast: in which people take only juice for a specific time period.

Safety in Fasting.

• People with diabetes or other health issues must consult a doctor before fasting as it can lead to hypoglycemia that can affect the health of diabetics adversely.
• People with any form of mental illness are adviced to not fast as any sort of stress the body is subjected to can worsen their illness further.
• Pregnant women, children, elderly; breastfeeding women or people with any health condition should as a matter of caution abstain from fasting or consult a doctor first as they may be unable to withstand the stress of fasting.
• During fasting, people may experience symptoms of detoxification like headache, fatigue, bad breath, nausea. This symptoms should clear up as the fast progresses beyond the second or third day but if it persists, see a physician.
• Ensure to rest a lot during fasting and do not partake in excessive physical or mental exercise.
• Be mindful of your body, if anything particularly unusual is happening, consult a doctor for advice.

Fasting is truly a natural way of cleansing and regenerating the body and has health benefits in addition to religious benefits. Natural health practitioners recommend including it in your health regimen regularly say for 2-3 days every 3-4 months or one day every week.
Till my next post, try fasting for the health benefits once in a while, stay beautiful and healthy-pink.
Dr. Anire Oduko.





Reference.
Balch, J.E., Stengler, M., Balch R.Y (2011) Prescription For Natural Cures.