Recent research has shown that short occasional fasts may have health benefits. Evidence is suggesting the controlled brief fasting may actually be good for you.

It may be that our bodies have developed to expect intermittent periods of time without food. Our prehistoric ancestors would have had periods when there was little food available. The occasional lack of food may have been important in how our physiological mechanisms developed.

Researchers studying members of the Church of Latter Day Saints have found that those members who fasted once per month had a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, than either members who did not fast or non-members.

One possible explanation is that when the body does not receive any food, that various control mechanisms in the body reset.

For instance many people who have metabolic syndrome have increased levels of glucose circulating in their blood. The body has become less able to regulate glucose levels and keep them in a normal range. This is not good since higher levels of blood glucose are associated with an increased rate of atherosclerosis and a greater risk of cardiovascular disease. It may be that when there is no food eaten that the glucose level drop for a period of time that the body resets the mechanisms for sensing and controlling glucose.

How often and how long to fast? The church members fasted once a month and missed two meals. Probably a fast should not be longer than a day and liquids with no calories such as water and tea should be consumed.

[tags]fasting, glucose, heart disease[/tags]