How to be human

I recently saw a documentary called Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead that got me interested in fasting. Up until now I’ve always looked at fasting as an extreme measure for those that don’t want to adjust their life-style to loose weight. After watching the two-plus hour long Fat Sick and Nearly Dead I was curious enough to want to learn a little more. 

General Research by Fancy Hands (My tag-team)

History of Fasting 
Fasting has been used for thousands of years as a medical therapy to help the body detoxify and rejuvenate from all kinds of health problems. It is loosely defined as “voluntarily not eating food for various lengths of time.” Many of the world’s oldest systems of health relied upon fasting for healing and as a way to prevent disease. The father of Western medicine, Hippocrates, found that fasting helped the body to heal itself, and he extolled its tremendous healing potential in his writings. Most world religions have used fasting as a way to improve physical and spiritual clarity. The Bible makes frequent references to the benefits of fasting, combined with prayer. Currently, fasting is becoming a more accepted method of detoxification for health practitioners throughout North America. 

How Does Fasting Work? 
The primary way in which fasting is beneficial is by simply giving the body time to rest. Specifically, the digestive organs are given a break from digesting food. A tremendous amount of energy is required for digestion, and the body can use this “saved” energy for healing and regeneration. In addition, a time of fasting prevents more toxic substances from entering the body and simultaneously allows for the expulsion of toxins. This is particularly true for the liver, which has to break down and metabolize all the toxic substances that enter the body. In addition, the immune system is also given a break from dealing with toxins from our food and water supply, as well as from our environment. 

Types of Fasting 

• Dry fasting. Also known as Absolute Fast, Black Fast, and Hebrew Fast is the most extreme of the types of fasting. Dry fasting has spiritual roots, and consists of foregoing food and water for short periods. While not necessarily recommended, it is interesting to read about. 
• Liquid fasting. As the name implies, this is fasting on liquids only. The liquid fasting page offers an overview of the variety of liquids used in this type of fasting both today and in the past. 
• Water fasting is the simplest and perhaps the oldest form of liquid fasting. It delivers the greatest level of therapeutic benefit physically and in a short period of time, as detox occurs more quickly. But a water fast can be more difficult to commit to for the beginner. 
• Juice fasting is extremely popular and offers a modicum of nutritional support in a pure and natural form. Almost any fruit or vegetable can be juiced with the powerful juicers on the market. 
• The Master Cleanse or Lemonade Diet is a relatively new approach, becoming popular in the 1970s. It includes calories in the form of pure maple syrup. Intestinal cleansing is a major part of the methodology. 
• Partial fasting. Also sometimes called selective fasting, partial fasting includes some solid food—anywhere from a very little to a lot of solid food. It’s not the amount of food, but the exclusion or limitation of certain foods that makes it a partial fast. Cleansing diets and mono-diets, like rice fasting, are partial fasts. 

Benefits of Fasting 
Fasting helps in weight loss and can also be good for health if it is done in a controlled manner. Fasting not only helps in weight loss but fasting also helps in balancing the digestive system. 

Negatives of Fasting 
People stretch themselves and do a lot of fasting to reduce weight but as we know that protein, vitamin, minerals, fat, carbohydrates are required for energy in the body and lack of these things may harm your body. Therefore, an excess amount of fasting is also not good for health and a balance of protein, vitamin, minerals, fat, carbohydrates etc is advised. 

Fasting Regimens 

• One day fast or 24-hour fast. This is the recommendation for beginners. But don’t discount even shorter fasts if you’ve never fasted before. Sixteen hour fasts can be helpful, as can adhering to the natural nightly fast of 10-12 hours.One day fasts are good when you feel something coming on, at the first sign of illness. It allows the body the resources to fight it off early. 
• Three-day fast. Good to perform monthly as a sort of “maintenance” routine, to keep toxins cleansed regularly. 
• One week fast. Often used as a quarterly (seasonal) cleansing detox. 
• 10-day fast. This is the standard recommended length for a Master Cleanse fast. Also, many use this length as a yearly maintenance detox and cleansing.. 
• Several week fast. These are only for the seasoned or those under close professional supervision. It’s best to have plenty of experience under your belt before tackling a long-term fast. You need to be familiar with your own body and it’s unique reactions to the fasting process. 

Resources:

Fasting: Pros & Cons 

http://www.steadyhealth.com/articles/Fasting__Pros_and_Cons_a139.html 

How Fasting Works 

http://www.ehow.com/how-does_4610578_fasting-work.html 

Healthy . net - Fasting 

http://www.healthy.net/scr/article.aspx?Id=1996#2 

Fasting Diets 

http://www.webmd.com/diet/fasting 

Fasting 

http://falconblanco.com/health/fasting.htm 

Fasting Center International 

http://www.fasting.com/ 

All about Fasting 

http://www.allaboutfasting.com/