For over a century, fasting has been espoused as a treatment of supposed great utility in the preservation of health,

especially rejuvenating the body, but above all, the mind.

But fast people even just 18 hours, and they get all hungry and irritable.

After one or two days, positive mood goes down, negative mood goes up, and by 72 hours,

people can feel sad, self- blaming, and suffer a loss of libido.

But then something strange starts to happen. After a few days, people

experience a fasting-induced mood enhancement, decreased anxiety, depression, fatigue,

and improved vigor. And that's what studies tend to show across the board. Once you get over

the hump, fast faster frequently experience an increased

level of vigilance and mood improvement, a subjective feeling of well-being, sometimes even

euphoria. And no wonder is by then your endorphine levels may shoot up nearly 50%. This

enhancement of mood, alertness, and calm, makes a certain amount of evolutionary sense.

Yet your body wants you to feel crappy initially, so you continue eating day-to-day when food is available.

But if you go a couple days without food, your body realizes that can't have you moping back in the cave,

you've got to get motivated to get out

there and find some calories.

So, can fasting be used for mood disorders like depression?

Yeah, it's great that you can get people to feel better after a few days of fasting,

but the critical question revolves around the persistence of mood improvement over time

once you start eating again.

You don't know until you put it to the test.

Interestingly, the little published evidence we have comes out of Japan and the former Soviet Union,

...