Fasting is often associated with Muslim activities during the month of Ramadan. Activities that are not physically eating and drinking for a certain period of time are also said to have benefits for overall health.
Yep! Not only health related to internal organs, but also other health that is visible from the outside, such as the skin for example. Quoted from the Bio Age Health website, fasting triggers many changes in the body that slow down aging, making you look young even though age no longer says the same thing.
Sahur is very important for people who are going to fast.
This is because fasting keeps cells and DNA healthy and is considered a reboot for the gut microbiome, which is the origin of inflammation in the body. Thus, systemic inflammation of the skin will be reduced.
Quoted from Health Slots, fasting also increases the body's metabolic activity, which has a good impact on the health of the body and skin. "When we fast, our bodies starve for a long time which causes some changes in metabolism. Our bodies get energy from the food we eat," explained dr. Nivedita Dadu, dermatologist, founder & chairman of Dadu Medical Center told Health Slots.
"In the absence of food, it goes through a process called gluconeogenesis in which our bodies store stored fat to obtain glucose (energy)," added dr. Nivedita.
During the process of gluconeogenesis, the body extracts glucose from non-carbohydrate sources, such as amino acids. Meanwhile, fasting also causes the levels of purines and pyrimidines in the body to be higher. It increases the level of antioxidants which are good for the skin.
"The increase in antioxidants helps maintain a balance when the body is starving. Fasting is the body's natural mechanism for dealing with hunger. Fasting further helps in rebuilding the losses caused by oxidative stress and free radicals. Therefore, fasting helps the skin fight aging," said dr. Nivedita.
How to Fast, Apart from Ramadan Fasting
Even though it is not the month of Ramadan or you are not fasting, you can still do this diet at any time, namely through intermittent fasting. This type of fasting has several meal plans that you can choose according to your wishes and needs. Here's the explanation.
Eat Stop Eat
Eat Stop Eat is a method of intermittent fasting. If you choose this fast, you fast for 24 hours once or twice a week. Quoted from Health Line, this method was developed by Brad Pilon, author of the popular book and entitled "Eat Stop Eat".
16:8
The intermittent fasting you do with this approach means you can eat for an 8 hour period and then fast for 16 hours. During these 8 hours, you must pay attention to your food intake properly and full of nutrients.
5:2
Similar to 16:8, this approach allows you to eat normally on 5 days and fast for 2 days consuming 500-600 calories per day.