You have heard about a new diet that is helpful for your health; water fasting. This time, you have made up your mind, read a few self-development books, listened to some Podcasts, and are confident to try it. It will help you a lot with weight loss. But will it do so?
Tahoe Springs Water provides all you should know about water fasting, benefits, health threats, and precautionary steps.
Table of Contents
What is exactly water fasting?
Water fasting is a diet that involves drinking only water and not anything else.
The diet takes about one to three days. Health experts recommend not to follow the water fasting diet for longer than the mentioned period without consulting with your doctor.
But what is the reason that people try water fasting and what does it have?
The one reason could be religious and the diet is common in a few religions. Jains are among them that have water fasting among their rituals.
Next, is to lose weight. People who have tried the diet reported losing weight and it was useful for them. But as mentioned, you shouldn’t try it for longer than three days before consulting with your health expert or diet. In fact, you are highly recommended to do it even before starting the diet.
There are also some health benefits of water fasting. You can know them in the below section and see if the diet is useful for you or not. Some studies have found benefits with water fasting. For example, a study by Mehrdad Alirezaei and his team has demonstrated the benefits of diet
Also, the studies of Laura Castello and her team, Sebastian Brandhorst, and others also mention the benefits of the diet.
Water fasting also cleanses your body and helps it to be refreshed.
The most important reason people try the diet is to take the benefits but you must make sure that it has benefits for you by your conditions.
In case you have never tried water fasting and want to try it, you would better make a few preparations. For instance, you can eat smaller portions of food so your stomach gets used to eating less or not eating at all.
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What you can and can’t eat in water fasting?
The name of the diet says clearly what you can and can’t eat. It includes drinking only water and not anything else. You are not allowed to drink any food or any other drink:
- Coffee
- tea
- alcohol
- zero-calorie sports drinks
- other beverage
As you may not eat anything but just water in your diet, there could be some threats to your health conditions by your conditions. So be cautious and advise with an expert.
If you tried water fasting, you need to be careful after ending it. It gets called the post-fast phase and is essential in your health and well-being.
When finished, try not to have a large meal at each serving time. You would better have a smaller amount of food each time and break them to 5-6 times a day. If you have large proportions of food, there could be some bad symptoms.
According to Hisham M Mehanna and his team’s research, you might be at risk of refeeding syndrome after trying the diet. The condition is fatal as your body undergoes lots of changes.
What are the benefits of water fasting?
The followings are some of the benefits of water fasting. But you would better consult with a health expert or a doctor before starting it.
The major benefits of water fasting are as follows:
- being overweight
- Diabetes
- high cholesterol
- high blood pressure
- heart disease
The information in detail is as follows:
Decrease the risk of some chronic diseases
The researches of Laura Castello, Teresa Froio, and others indicate that there could be some benefits with water fasting for:
- Diabetes
- cancer
- heart disease
The studies of C R Pedersen and Changan Lee also say the same thing. In one research, the participants who tried water fasting had lower levels of cholesterol and triglycerides. They are the two major risk factors of heart disease and experts warn about them all the time.
Studies on animals also show that the diet can help the heart against radicals. The study of Laura Castello we mentioned earlier shows the results of animal research. The study of V. Lobo, A. Patil, and A. Phatak show that the diet can help with slowing the growth of cancer cells and genes.
Some of the mentioned studies are on animals and the rest are in laboratory areas so you would better be careful before trying the diet.
Can help with blood pressure
The study of Alan C Goldhamer, Douglas J Lisle, and their team show that diet can help with blood pressure. The conclusion part of their long and extensive article is that says that “water-only fasting appears to be a safe and effective means of normalizing BP. It may assist in motivating health-promoting diet and lifestyle changes”.
In another study, the people who had blood pressure true water fasting for 14 days but they were under medical supervision. The result was that more than %80 of the participant’s blood pressure went back to an average normal level.
The same result was true with the participants of A Goldhamer study and his team there were 174 people in this one and 90% of them showered a decrease in cholesterol fall.
Help with replacing old cells
Li Yen Mah and Kevin M. Ryan and other researchers’ study on animals stay that replacing old cells of the body can help with diseases like:
- cancer
- Alzheimer’s
- heart disease
The process of replacing old cells with new ones gets called autophagy. The gathering of damaged cells is one of the risk factors for cancer. Animal studies indicate that water fasting helps with autophagy.
The studies are on animals and more research is needed to find the results on humans.
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What are the disadvantages of water fasting?
Although there are benefits with water fasting, there could be the following risks and daggers as well:
May lose lots of weight quickly and dangerously
The diet leads to losing a lot of weight quickly and it could be dangerous for you. The research of P R Kerndt indicates that you can lose two pounds a day during the diet. The weight loss could come from:
- water
- carbs
- Or even muscle mass.
The weight you lose is not genuine and is in the wrong way. So it could return and pose some risks to your body.
Increase the risk of dehydration
It sounds absolutely storage to become dehydrated in a diet that includes only drinking water. The research of Isabelle Guelinckx and others how that 20-30% of your daily water comes from food. So what is the problem?
Experts say that if you drink water and don’t eat food, you are likely to get dehydrated. You need to eat and drink water to ensure your hydration and one doesn’t work without the other one.
You should know the signs and symptoms of dehydration and take action right away:
- dizziness
- nausea
- headaches
- constipation
- low blood pressure
- low productivity
Could cause orthostatic hypotension
The study of Craig Gustafson says that Orthostatic hypotension is highly likely among people who water fast. As you drink more water during the diet due to feeling hungry, you are likely to suffer from orthostatic hypotension.
It leads to a decrease in blood pressure that ends too;
- Feeling dizzy
- Lightheaded
- Fatigue
- Trouble focusing
- Risk of fainting
In case you experience orthostatic hypotension, you would better avoid activities that require concentration and high focus such as driving or working with heavy or dangerous machines.
The diet may not be suitable for people who work in dangerous fields or require rigorous physical activity.
Nutrient deficiencies
Water fasting could lead to nutrient deficiencies as you’re not getting the necessary:
- calories
- Minerals
- Vitamins
- Fatty acids
- Amino acids
- electrolytes
In case you have not received the above necessary items in your diet, the diet might pose more threats to your health.
Who Should not try water fasting?
The following people would better not try water fasting. It’s not safe for every people. They are strictly recommended to consult with a doctor and act with caution:
- Suffer from eating disorder
- Are very thin or skinny
- Suffer from heart problems
- Diabetic 1 type
- Take specific medication
- Suffer from migraines or have uncontrolled ones.
Can water fasting lead to weight loss?
The answer is yes. Water fasting can help you lose weight. But you must definitely consult with your health expert or it could come with heavy risks. The diet could pose several health risks if you don’t be careful and take precautionary measures.
There are better diets that have fewer risks you can use to lose weight. They don’t require you to have worries over your health and the side effects.
The final word
There are different diest and ways you can help your body to stay healthy. Water fasting might be one of them. But you would better advise with a health expert and receive as much information as you can before starting it. Tahoe Springs Water provided all you should know in this article.
Going on a diet or not, drinking water is essential. As the taste of water in your area might not be good, you are likely not to drink enough water and suffer from dehydration. All you need is a reliable water company with a good taste of water.
Tahoe Springs Water has provided the best of alkaline, spring mountain, and purified water to the residents of Las Vegas since 1994.
Give us a call at +702-903-1433 and order your water option now. Delivery is always free. You can find more information about water in the blog section and ask your questions in the comment section.