Fasting for three days can regenerate entire immune system, study finds

Fasting for as little as three days can regenerate the entire immune system, even in the elderly, scientists have found in a breakthrough described as "remarkable".

Although fasting diets have been criticized by nutritionists for being unhealthy, new research suggests starving the body kick-starts stem cells into producing new white blood cells, which fight off infection.

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Research article

Prolonged fasting forces the body to use stores of glucose and fat but also breaks down a significant portion of white blood cells.

During each cycle of fasting, this depletion of white blood cells induces changes that trigger stem cell-based regeneration of new immune system cells.

Scientists found that prolonged fasting also reduced the enzyme PKA, which is linked to aging and a hormone which increases cancer risk and tumor growth.

"When you starve, the system tries to save energy, and one of the things it can do to save energy is to recycle a lot of the immune cells that are not needed, especially those that may be damaged,"

What dont kills you makes you stronger it seems.

Interesting news no one can say here big pharma will profit from this find, or any other crazy stuff like the ones you people pulled with the possible malaria vaccine

Some how i dont think is a good idea not to eat for 3 straight days

a reply to: Indigent

With the obeseity problem in the usa , fasting sounds like a good idea.
I have found when I have put on a few extra pounds not eating is the quickest way to loose the beef.

a reply to: Indigent

This is a really interesting post. There is an old saying 'feed a cold and starve a fever' and that would now make sense.

During each cycle of fasting, this depletion of white blood cells induces changes that trigger stem cell-based regeneration of new immune system cells.

So essentially it's allowing a reboot of the immune system, for the body to fight the illness itself. Thanks Indigent, I'll keep an eye on this.

S&F

I'm contemplating doing this but at the same time i dont want to appear in the Darwin awards

I used to fast weekly, literally not eating for two or three days at a time, I never felt healthier, rarely if ever had a cold, didn't visit a GP in years. I recommend it, as long as it is done safely.

I wonder if this has anything to do with sugar intake. Sugar hurts the immune system. Lack of sugar for three days would make the immune system happy, I'd think.

a reply to: FlyersFan

I think the idea is to force your body to consume the reserve, part of the reserve are defective cells, so you remove the trash and replace them with good ones when you eat again

originally posted by: FlyersFan
I wonder if this has anything to do with sugar intake. Sugar hurts the immune system. Lack of sugar for three days would make the immune system happy, I'd think.

Sugar ? Nah. Well maybe if you're american, full of poisonous corn sirup everywhere.

But the science behind fasting has been known to Muslims for a long time and is part of one of the five pillars of Islam.
Ramadan is a 30 day fast, and it's amazing what it can do for your health.

And it's also amazing to have a clear, rational and relaxed mind.... You should try it sometimes.

I used to fast somtimes 2 days in a row when I was younger and out of work, not out of choice though HAHA I was so broke I could not afford to eat every day.

a reply to: samsamm9

Anytime you eat, no matter if it's full of corn syrup or not ... your sugar levels increase in your blood. So no .. it's not an American thing to have sugar in your diet. ANY food raises sugar levels. That's why, before a blood test, everyone is supposed to fast. Otherwise the sugar level check is off.

So again, I'm thinking that the drop off in sugar in the blood stream from fasting could help an immune system. Immune systems hate sugar.

As for the Ramadan being a 30 day fast. Well .. not really. There is no eating during daylight hours. But after hours you all can stuff yourself full of food.... Right? So that's not really fasting.

originally posted by: FlyersFan
I wonder if this has anything to do with sugar intake. Sugar hurts the immune system. Lack of sugar for three days would make the immune system happy, I'd think.

The human regulator and filter systems were never intended to have to put up with all the bull that dumped into the body these days. Proper function of the pancreas is naturally within a much smaller range than it is made to work these days in modern sugar world. Wide swings in insulin use, that is naturally produced in the body, causes all sorts of problems. The bodies fat storing abilities were never intended to support unhealthy weight gains. What a mess.

a reply to: FlyersFan
Yeah 30 full days sounds overboard, 3 hours (shelter) 3 days (water) 3 weeks (food).
Well unless you drink beer like the monks I guess, I believe alcohol is off the table for muslims.
I may be wrong as I am definitely not a studied man in such cases.
But 30 solid days seems too much.
I guess they could juice though.

a reply to: Indigent

Thanks OP. A three-day fast is very easy to do once you decide that you're going to ignore your bodies fussing about its eating habits. I've done much longer, but not for awhile. So folks who think it's dangerous, or you will die from not eating for three days - ha! But drink water for sure (a fast doesn't mean not drinking water), and take "Vitamin C" in some form (on one long fast I used powdered ascorbic acid so it wasn't a solid tablet that needed to be digested).

This is slightly off-topic but then again, is on topic. I've done a 14 hour fast every day (from my last food of the day until the first of the next) ever since I read in one of Swami Satchidananda's books that the same organs we use to digest are the same organs that do toxic cleansing, and if we do a 14-hour fast then we have at least seven hours of toxic cleansing a day. As soon as I read that I started that routine, and haven't missed a day. Good old Swami Satch.

a reply to: Indigent

A human can survive without food for 5-7 days it has been well prooven especially in survival situations but also hunger strikes. As long as you drink plenty of water.

a reply to: RickyD

I'm type 1 diabetic and take insulin, few hours without eating and i get tunnel vision.

originally posted by: RickyD
a reply to: Indigent

A human can survive without food for 5-7 days it has been well prooven especially in survival situations but also hunger strikes. As long as you drink plenty of water.

5 to 7 days? 'That's just a good cleansing fast. My longest, which I wouldn't repeat but it was worth doing once, was 21 days, and I was walking miles a day during the last days too. So death will come in 7 days of fasting only if you close your eyes and run off a cliff.

The 5 to 7 days you talk about may be if you don't drink water. Lack of water is what kills the poor people in hospices who are removed from food and water by their loving families so they could die peacefully and open up the room for the next occupant.

Bobby Sands, the infamous hunger striker of Long Kesh dies after 66 days of hunger striking.

Sands died on 5 May 1981 in Maze prison hospital after 66 days of hunger-striking, aged 27.[28] The original pathologist's report recorded the hunger strikers' causes of death as "self-imposed starvation", later amended to simply "starvation" after protests from the dead strikers' families.[29] The coroner recorded verdicts of "starvation, self-imposed".

en.wikipedia.org...

There were others too.

Spiro

a reply to: Indigent

Hmmmmm...that may cause a problem or 2. I wonder if there is a drink and natural sugar combo that would sustain you for 3 days.

Cleansing the system from harmful content is always welcome. Since everything is toxic-polluted these days, the body will give you a big thank you for letting it go on holiday, so will the digestive system. Of course the water you would have to drink from a spring. Try going on an only fruit diet for three days and observe what comes out. Acid! It will burn,not as badly as the liver cleansing with epsom salts, but its good enough. Surprised though about the regenerative process it unfolds. I might try it for a day or two. a reply to: Indigent

a reply to: Indigent

I used to fast once every month for 3 days. Fasting does keep you healthy - and might explain why I'm doing so well despite my many chronic/long-term health problems. Think I'll start fasting again.