Intermittent Fasting

In Blog by Amanda Chong

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What is fasting? It is the voluntary abstinence or reduction from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. Fasting is normally done for religious reasons or when one is required to undergo a medical procedure or check-up, such as a colonoscopy or surgery.

There are many different types of fasts ranging from the extreme (Absolute Fast/Dry Fasting) to the mild (Daniel Fast). People who fast regularly will do so for many different reasons.

Besides building character qualities like self-control and determination, fasting is an effective and safe method of helping the body to detoxify itself. In fact, fasting is recommended for any illness, as it gives the body the rest it needs to recover. Colon disorders, allergies, and respiratory diseases are most responsive to fasting. By relieving the body of the work required to digest food, fasting allows the body to heal and rid itself of toxins.

During a fast, the following happen:

  • The natural process of toxin excretion continues, while the influx of new toxins is reduced. This results in a reduction of total body toxicity.
  • The energy usually used for digestion is redirected to immune function, cell growth and eliminatory processes.
  • The immune system’s workload is greatly reduced, and the digestive tract is spared any inflammation due to allergic reactions to food.
  • Due to a lowering of serum fats that thin the blood, tissue oxygenation is increased and white blood cells are moved more efficiently.
  • Physical awareness and sensitivity to diet and surroundings are increased.

A fast can help you heal with greater speed; cleanses your liver, kidneys, and colon; purifies your blood, lowers blood pressure, reduces inflammation in the body, reduces excess weight and water, flushes out toxins, clears the eyes and tongue, and cleanses the breath.

In recent years a new method of fasting has emerged, one that has gotten major attention in the fitness and health industry. It is known as “Intermittent Fasting”.

There are 6 popular methods of intermittent fasting currently being practised throughout the world. Let us look at what they are:

  1. The 5:2 Diet: Eat normally for 5 days, limit your calorie intake to between 500-600 calories during the remaining 2 days.
  2. Eat-Stop-Eat: Fast for 24 hours, once or twice a week.
  3. Alternate-Day Fasting: Fast every other day.
  4. The Warrior Diet: Fast during the day, eat a huge meal at night.
  5. Spontaneous Meal Skipping: Skip meals when convenient.
  6. The 16:8 Method: Consists of a 16-hour fast (usually overnight) and an 8-hour “eating window” during the day.

Based on our experience, the 16:8 Method is the most manageable, realistic and therapeutic way to gain the benefits of intermittent fasting for the following reasons:

  1. It is not based on deprivation as meals are being consumed daily.
  2. There is no need to count calories (within reason), so there is no regret or guilt associated.
  3. It is sustainable as it is something people can stick with easily: a daily fixed eating and fasting schedule.
  4. Flexible enough to be overlapped with any other diets of your choice.

What are the health benefits of the 16:8 Intermittent Fasting?

  1. It is an effective way to lose weight and lower blood pressure. In this study1, 23 obese adults averaging 45 years old participated. The study went on for 12 weeks and their dieting results were compared with those of a previous study that used the “alternate day fasting’ method.

On average, those on the 16:8 diet consumed fewer calories and lost more weight and had lower blood pressure than the study that used the “alternate day fasting” method. One of the reasons for this was because the 16:8 diet is much easier for people to maintain over a longer period of time.

1(https://content.iospress.com/articles/nutrition-and-healthy-aging/nha170036#ref010)

  1. Reduces oxidative stress and inflammation in asthma patients. This research2 was led by James Johnson from Louisiana State University. They examined the effects of intermittent fasting on patients with asthma.

This was the result: after only two weeks, not only did the patients experience weight loss but they also showed improved symptoms. In addition to that, there was a decrease in cholesterol and triglycerides and reduction in markers of oxidative stress.

2(https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17291990)

  1. Exercise combined with the 16:8 Method helps protect lean body mass3. After an 8-week duration, 34 adult men experienced reduction in fat mass without the destruction of lean mass. The researchers also observed improved muscle endurance and a decrease in inflammatory markers.

3(https://translational-medicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12967-016-1044-0)

  1. This study4 suggests that short term daily intermittent fasting may help improve blood sugar levels in people with type 2 Diabetes.

4(https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28465792)

Here are a few tips to help you if you want to give 16:8 Intermittent Fasting a try:

  1. Drink NewLifeTM Herbal Teas and Distilled Water.

During your 16 hours of fasting, you are allowed to drink unsweetened NewLifeTM Herbal Teas (Chamomile, Peppermint, Zinger and MorLife Tea) and distilled water.

  1. Fast overnight.

If you end your dinner at 7pm. Your next meal will be at 11am (the following day). Starting your fast at 7pm will allow you to use up part of the 16 hours by sleeping.

  1. Keep busy.

Keep yourself busy during the first part of the morning so that your mind is occupied and not thinking about food.

  1. Make wise food choices.

Although you can eat whatever you want during the eight-hour feeding window, we strongly recommend eating whole, nutritious foods to make the most of your meals. You would want to go easy on carbohydrates and avoid processed, fried or sugar-heavy foods. Take beneficial health foods and supplements to detoxify, nourish and protect your body while you fast.

If you have not done any fasting before, please seek advice from experienced health professionals, NewLifeTM Nutritionist, or NewLifeTM Holistic Health Coach before you embark on any kind of fasting.

DETOXIFY

Herbal Klenz Powder: fibre

Herbal Klenz Powder is a convenient way to ensure that you get enough fibre every day. It contains both soluble and insoluble fibres.

Many of our customers take 1 teaspoon of Herbal Klenz Powder mixed in a glass of Apple Cider Vinegar & Pure Raw Honey twice a day, and report that it is remarkably effective in promoting healthy, regular bowel movement. It does not have a laxative effect.

Herbal Klenz Powder not only contains fibre from psyllium husks and cellulose, it also contains apple pectin, Butcher’s broom, and Bentonite, which help to eliminate heavy metal toxicity, improve gastrointestinal health, as well as detoxify bacteria, viruses, and parasites from the body.

NOURISH

Super Green Food ++: phytonutrients

Super Green Food ++ offers a high-quality, convenient nutritional solution to help in the prevention of nutritional deficiency, which we know as one of the root causes of all degenerative diseases.

Super Green Food ++ is 100% natural and organic, and does not contain any artificial preservatives, additives, or flavours. It has a pleasant taste and is naturally sweetened using stevia. Super Green Food ++ is a newly upgraded proprietary complex and is now fortified with a super-antioxidant blend for additional health benefits. Inflammation is a natural process that occurs when the body detects a harmful stimulus. Chronic inflammation can lead to a number of health problems if it is left unchecked. Antioxidants help to reduce and control inflammation in the body, which in the long run contributes to disease prevention, better health, and increased well-being.

Flax Seed Oil: essential fatty acids

It is crucial that you incorporate healthy fats into your diet. Omega-3 fatty acids and monounsaturated fats are examples of good healthy fats. Healthy fats help reduce inflammation, improve insulin sensitivity, and are essential for maintaining healthy heart function, immune function, brain function, metabolic function and a healthy nervous system.

 

Flaxseed oil is a rich source of Omega-3. It contains Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs) which are necessary fats that humans cannot synthesize and must be obtained through diet. One or two teaspoons per day of NewLife™’s Omega Gold Flax Seed Oil provides building blocks for all cell structures, including neurons in the brain, smooth skin, and healthy hair. NewLife™’s Omega Gold Flax Seed Oil assures the highest quality oil, which is stable against rancidity. The oil is extracted from organically grown golden flax seeds using a special cold-pressing process, which eliminates the damaging effect of light, oxygen, and heat.

 

K-Salt: potassium

Potassium is one of the most important minerals in the human body. It is indispensable in tissue protein synthesis and enzymatic processes, helps to maintain intracellular pH and to regulate kidney functions. An adequate intake of potassium is essential for growth, healthy nervous system, regulating the heart, building muscles, as well as regenerating and maintaining youthful, healthy tissues. Without sufficient potassium in the body, premature ageing sets in, causing your skin and muscle tone to go downhill, while wrinkles and fine lines fill your face and neck. A deficiency may also result in fatigue, leg cramps, muscles weakness, acne, mood swings, and irregular heartbeat. Low potassium is also associated with risks of high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, arthritis, cancer, digestive disorders, and infertility.

2mg of K-Salt provides the amount of potassium equivalent to 30 bananas. K-Salt has been tried and proven through the years in natural healing and disease prevention. With consistent supplementation of K-Salt, you can anticipate improvement in overall health. K-Salt helps to:

  • remove excess sodium from cells and tissues
  • build and strengthen at the cellular level
  • counteract water retention
  • replace and balance electrolytes
  • regulate kidney function
  • prevent coughs and colds
  • reduce chest congestion
  • strengthen immunity

PROTECT

ImmuFlora®: protect your gut

NewLife™’s ImmuFlora® is produced using breakthrough technology where the strains are able to withstand stomach acid and emerge intact in the intestines. ImmuFlora® helps to support a healthy gastrointestinal tract and optimum immune function. When taken regularly, ImmuFlora could:

  • re-establish intestinal microflora to ensure that the friendly bacteria outweigh the bad bacteria
  • maintain a healthy intestinal environment to prevent over-growth of pathogenic bacteria and parasites
  • give the immune system a boost
  • stimulate self-repair and self-rejuvenation of cells within the body
  • improve nutrient assimilation and absorption
  • cleanse and detoxify the intestinal tract.

Liverin: your liver tonic

In addition to all the goodness from the 5 products above, the 6th Essential has one very important benefit – the protection of the liver.

The liver is one of the most important organs in the body. It performs more than 500 functions. Just to name a few: it filters all the harmful substances from what we consume (including medicine), inhale, and even what we apply on our skin; fights infections and filters out bad bacteria in the blood; manages our hormones and blood sugar; stores energy from the nutrients we take in; and makes blood proteins, bile, and several enzymes that the body requires. In short, an unhealthy liver means an unhealthy body.

NewLifeTM’s Liverin contains 5 powerful herbs which are used as remedies for the liver: Milk thistle (seed) extract (with 80% silimarin), Dandelion (root), Artichoke (leaf) extract, Burdock root, and Celery seed extract. It is a unique formula, made specifically to help cleanse, rebuild, and protect the liver.

Benefits:

  • rebuilds liver cells and removes toxins
  • provides powerful anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory effects
  • reverses liver damage caused by medicines, excessive alcohol consumption as well as the effects of pollutants found in the environment
  • stimulates the liver to increase bile flow, which carries away waste and breaks down fats during digestion

It is suitable for vegans. It contains no synthetic ingredients, no animal ingredients, and is all-natural and chemical-free.

Try Intermittent Fasting Today!

By incorporating the 16:8 principle into your lifestyle, you will tap into the many clinically validated benefits of intermittent fasting such as reduced inflammation, better insulin control, increased energy, lower blood pressure, and weight loss. To make the best of your fast, nourish your body with the right food and supplements.