Therapeutic Fasting

I am a licensed Naturopathic Doctor in the state of California, which is where I practice medicine.  This is a compilation of my findings both in research and clinical experience and is in no way meant to be used as a prescription or justification of using therapeutic fasting as any part or stand-alone treatment for any condition without the aid of an experienced medical practitioner.  A doctor that is skilled in using therapeutic fasting as a modality for fine tuning health is valuable and necessary to keep you safe during any type of calorie restriction or fast. To speak with Dr. Ryan please fill out this form

This will be an ongoing resource for learning about all things fasting!  I will compile a list of resources at the end so you can find out for yourself interesting facts on this upsurge of an old keystone to life. There is a lot of research that can add more to this list; however, this is the most research supported conditions that may benefit from some form of fasting.

Fasting makes sense to me in how it fits with our dynamic lifestyle (before the industrial revolution of course).  Food availability has changed so much since our time as hunter/gatherers.  Humans are a part of the ecosystem and we need to remember that we play direct and indirect roles in flux with our niche and the greater global community on the whole. 

Here is a list of the conditions in which the use of fasting is useful as adjunct and/or primary treatment:

• High blood pressure
• Diabetes
• Epilepsy
• Obesity
• Chronic pain
• Cardiovascular disease
• Autoimmune diseases
• Gastrointestinal diseases
• Arthritis
• Infections/Inflammatory disorders
• Chemical poisoning
• Allergies/Food intolerance
• Cancer
• Neurodegeneration
• Duodenal ulcers
• Uterine fibroid
• Psychosomatic diseases
• Neurogenic bladder
• Psoriasis and Eczema
• Thrombophlebitis
• Varicose ulcers
• Neurocirculatory disease
• Irritable bowel syndrome
• Dysorexia nervosa
• Bronchial asthma
• Lumbago
• Depression
• Neurosis and Schizophrenia
• Parasites

When NOT to fast

if you are at or under ideal body weight, patients suffering from Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia or related eating disorders, individuals who are cachexic from serious illness, individuals with decreased vitality (elderly, very young children), individuals who fear the process, individuals with various psychological disorders (psychosis, bipolar disorder, dissociative disorders, anxiety, depression, etc.) – (Pizzorno and Murray, 2013)

Some definitions as well:

3 Stages of Fasting:

• Early fasting – this is that first few days before the detoxification phase begins typically around day 2-3 (I recommend talking with a medical professional before beginning an attempt to go beyond 24 hrs.)
• Fasting – beginning day 2-3 (I highly recommend consulting an experienced medical professional if going beyond early fasting)
• Starvation: Chronic nutrient insufficiency which can result in degeneration and death

Intermittent fasting: including alternate day fasting or 2 days a week fasting. Resting metabolic rate is not decreased.

Periodic Fasting: three days or longer every 2 or more weeks

Calorie Restriction: daily caloric intake is reduced chronically by 20%–40%, but meal frequency is maintained. Resting metabolic rate is decreased in response to calorie restriction according to a study done by Muller et. al (Metabolic adaptation to caloric restriction and subsequent refeeding: the Minnesota Starvation Experiment revisited)

Resources

Books:

• Pizzorno, Joseph E. Jr., Murray, Michael T. Textbook of natural medicine. Elsevier/Churchill Livingstone. St. Louis, Mo, [2013]

Research:

• Longo VD, Mattson MP. Fasting: molecular mechanisms and clinical application. Cell Metab. 2014;19(2):181-192. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cmet.2013.12.008

Individuals:

• Dr. Alan Goldhamer, D.C.
• Dr. Jason Fung, M.D.
• High Intensity Health – youtube video series interviews with health professionals