Intermittent Fasting Infographic

Intermittent Fasting Infographic
(Shutterstock*)
Joseph Mercola
5/27/2014
Updated:
6/23/2016

Intermittent fasting is a powerful approach to eating that is becoming very popular because it can help you lose weight without feeling hunger, and help reduce your risk of chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease. If done correctly, intermittent fasting can also lead to better sleep and lots of energy.

So far, research overwhelmingly supports this notion that ditching the “three square meals a day” approach in favor of intermittent fasting may do wonders for your health. This type of scheduled eating was practiced by our ancestors, since they did not have the frequent access to food that we have now.

Intermittent Fasting: How to Enhance Your Body’s Ability to Burn Fat:

Intermittent Fasting

The Many Benefits of Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent fasting is a type of scheduled eating plan where you adjust your normal daily eating period to an hours-long window of time without cutting calories.

Throughout history, fasting is a commonplace practice and has been a spiritual tradition for millennia. Today, modern science has proven that fasting yields the following benefits:

  • Helps promote insulin sensitivity – Optimal insulin sensitivity is crucial for your health, as insulin resistance or poor insulin sensitivity contributes to nearly all chronic diseases
  • Normalizes ghrelin levels, also known as your “hunger hormone”
  • Increases the rate of HGH production, which has an important role in health, fitness, and slowing the aging process
  • Lowers triglyceride levels
  • Helps suppress inflammation and fight free radical damage

In addition, exercising in a fasted state can help counteract muscle aging and wasting, and boost fat-burning.

Adding Exercise to Intermittent Fasting Can Provide Even More Benefits

Dr. Joseph Mercola is the founder of Mercola.com. An osteopathic physician, best-selling author, and recipient of multiple awards in the field of natural health, his primary vision is to change the modern health paradigm by providing people with a valuable resource to help them take control of their health.
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