Intermittent fasting is becoming an increasingly popular trend, and for good reason.
It packs in a wide array of heatlh benefits, and makes it easier than ever to lose extra weight without going on any weird or hardcore fad diets.
According to hopkinsmedicine.org, intermittent fasting is an eating plan that switches between fasting and eating on a regular schedule.
With that being said, a lot of people don’t actually know how many benefits there are to this fasting style, or exactly what those benefits entail.
So today, we’re going to dig in and talk about it…
Here are 5 intermittent fasting benefits that you may not have heard about before.
(Note: These benefits were sourced from Healthline.com’s article on the subject—which was very informative and well-written.)
1. It Changes Hormone Levels
When you go for a while without eating, your insulin levels will drop significantly.
Your HGH levels will also tend to increase, which means that you’ll be better equipped to burn fat and build muscle.
2. The Body Performs Cellular Repair On Itself
When you stop eating for an intermittent fast, your body will start to induce a range of important cellular repair processes.
It’ll remove waste from the cells, and will basically help to ‘clean out’ your systems.
It’s pretty awesome!
3. You’ll Burn More Visceral Fat
A lot of people try intermittent fasting as a means to lose weight.
Of course, one reason for why it works is because you’ll tend to eat fewer meals—and hence, fewer calories.
But it also helps to enhance your metabolic rate—making it easier to burn up more of the calories that you consume.
So it helps you to stop excess weight gain (and aids in weight loss) at both ends of the process.
4. It Lowers Your Risk For Type 2 Diabetes
Another awesome benefit to intermittent fasting is that it helps to lower insulin resistance—which, as a by-product, also helps to protect you from type 2 diabetes.
Intermittent fasting has actually been shown to have major benefits for insulin resistance.
In human studies, intermittent fasting has been shown to reduce blood sugar levels by 3 to 6 percent over the course of 8 to 12 weeks in prediabetic test subjects.
5. It Helps To Curb Inflammation
Inflammation is a key driver for many different types of chronic disease.
And yet, intermittent fasting has been shown to help reduce inflammation.
This is just another piece of evidence that goes to show that this latest health and wellness ‘trend’ isn’t just a trend.
It’s actually an amazing process that actually provides some key benefits to the human body.
In Conclusion
Hopefully, this post has helped you to see some of the benefits that you can enjoy as a result of establishing an ‘intermittent fasting habit’ in your life.
Of course, it’s not for everyone.
But when it’s performed correctly, it can do wonders for the human body and really supercharge your health and wellness outcomes.