Friday, January 11, 2008

Benefits of Fasting for Health, Spirituality, Vitality and Longevity

There are many reasons to learn about fasting for health, fasting for spirituality and for weight loss. If you’re thinking about doing a fast for your health or any other reason, it’s a great idea to do some research and learn as much as you can about what happens to your body while you are fasting. There are benefits as well as some warnings when it comes to doing a fast for any period of time.

Some look to fasting for weight loss. There is a lot of information available to help you learn all the benefits of fasting with guidelines and safety precaution information or supporting herbs and vitamins.

A Few Warnings About Fasting


First: you need adequate hydration when you go without food. Dehydration is very dangerous and can happen quickly. Some people do nothing but drink water while fasting and others do a pure juice fast which can provide you with plenty of nutrients, hydration and electrolytes while still giving you some detoxifying benefits.

Second, if you have any health concerns or issues with blood sugar you might want to talk to your doctor first. Some people who do fasting for health benefits do it through a supervised medical treatment center although the vast majority do so at home. A fast is sometimes necessary regardless of your health status for a short term period due to the need for a specific medical test but you should find out if there are any precautions you need to take while fasting.

Try to keep it low key while you are not eating. Not only will you want to reserve your energy but you won’t want to be around the sights and smells of food unless absolutely necessary.

Understanding ways to do fasting as well as the best way to break your fast are important. The aim is typically to have the body go into autolysis and use up stores of energy and fat and resume to healthful eating before the body starts to use protein as energy and ease back into food in a healthful and beneficial way.

Benefits Of Fasting

When you fast you can go through a detoxification process. Your body can shed toxins and impurities. It can even help you overcome addiction. Fasting can make a lifestyle transition helpful. Rather than trying to wean your body off unhealthy foods and suffer cravings, fasting can be an excellent way to jump start the process and have a speedy detoxification process which can reduce the cravings.

Fasting can also help your body target all its resources to healing instead of processing food. When the body is in fasting mode this can result in damaged cells becoming healed, unhealthy growths and bacteria or yeasts being starved and the lymphatic system being energized.

In many cultures, fasting is linked to an increased spiritual connection and to longevity or increased life expectancy.

Is Fasting Right For You?

Part of our culture has made us believe that that food equals comfort. Deprivation is very different from fasting. Learning the benefits and learning tips for the first time you fast can be very beneficial and there’s a wealth of information available to help you.

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