Fasting for Health: What Do We Know? (SNP34)

Sigma Nutrition Radio

Danny Lennon

Sigma, Dietetics, Evidencebased, Nutrition, Training, Health & Fitness, Science, Diet, Fitness, Evidence, Bodybuilding, Health

4.8 • 626 Ratings

🗓️ 29 October 2024

⏱️ 21 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Fasting has gained immense popularity as a dietary approach, but what does the scientific evidence say about its health benefits?

Studies have explored how fasting might influence metabolic markers, energy expenditure, and even aging. However, while fasting shows promise in some animal models, translating these effects to humans is less clear.

A key part of the debate centers on whether fasting offers unique health advantages or whether its benefits stem primarily from reduced calorie intake. Time-restricted eating and intermittent fasting protocols show promise in regulating appetite and reducing energy intake, potentially leading to weight loss. But, when calories are controlled, does fasting still improve health independently?

This episode explores the evidence to determine if fasting confers metabolic advantages over non-fasting diets. In addition, we’ll take a look at its impact on behavioral patterns and ask if that could play a pivotal role in promoting better health outcomes.

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Timestamps:

[00:54] Defining fasting
[03:44] Historical context and early research
[08:01] Mechanisms and claims of fasting
[18:15] Types of fasting protocols
[22:18] Time-restricted eating and chronobiology
[28:29] Energy expenditure and behavioral changes
[36:53] Fasting vs. weight loss: independent benefits
[41:47] Health markers and weight loss outcomes
[43:37] Muscle mass concerns during fasting
[47:31] Animal models vs. human studies
[51:29] InterFAST study insights
[01:00:37] Behavioral vs. metabolic changes
[01:11:25] So what do we know?

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello and welcome to Sigma Nutrition Radio. As you are currently listening on the public feed of the
0:05.9	podcast, what you're going to listen to today is a preview of one of our premium exclusive episodes.
0:11.5	These are episodes that we publish in their entirety on our Sigma Nutrition Premium podcast feed,
0:17.7	and therefore to listen to that in its entirety, you need to be a Sigma Nutrition
0:21.5	Premium subscriber. Being a premium subscriber also gives you a host of other benefits, including
0:26.6	detailed study notes to our podcast episodes and full episode transcripts, as well as other
0:32.8	materials that help you get more from your podcast listening. So take a listen to this preview today. I hope
0:39.1	you enjoy it. And if you want to get these extra bonus podcast episodes in their entirety, as well as
0:44.7	those other benefits, then take a look at Sigma Nutrition Premium, which is linked in the
0:49.1	description box wherever you're currently listening or over on sigmautrition.com slash premium.
0:55.2	See if it's for you, maybe give it a try.
0:57.2	And I think it's really going to enhance how much you learn and retain from these podcast episodes.
1:03.1	So without further ado, please enjoy this preview of today's episode. Hello and welcome to Sigma Nutrition Radio. My name is Danny Lennon. You're very
1:25.5	welcome to this episode, which is a premium
1:28.2	exclusive episode of the podcast. And we're going to be discussing the concept of fasting,
1:34.3	taking a look at what we currently know, some of the different hypotheses around how it may
1:39.7	influence our health in the long term. And giving an overall understanding of what are some of the
1:46.0	key conclusions we can take. And we're going to be drawing on some of the input of a variety of
1:51.3	experts who have given views on this on this podcast over time and hopefully getting to some
1:57.2	conclusion of what really we can take away from this area. Now, probably the most
2:02.4	useful place to start as we tend to do is with an understanding of some definitions and what we're
2:08.0	really conceptualizing. So when we say what is fasting, there's different people that will talk
	...

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