Intermittent fasting may help you to live longer: US study

Intermittent fasting, a form of time restricted eating, gives you less opportunity to eat throughout the day. During periods of prolonged fasting, calories from the previous meal are exhausted, forcing the body to start burning body fat.

Now, a recent study from the University of Utah in the US hints that intermittent fasting may also help you to live longer, Forbes reported.

In contrast to the average American that eats throughout the day, individuals that commit to intermittent fasting restrict their eating based on the time, or day of the week. Some choose to eat all their daily calories within an 8 hour window, followed by a 16 hour period of fasting.

Others take the 5:2 approach, in which they eat normally for five days out of the week but restrict themselves to only one meal the other two days. There are many different approaches to intermittent fasting, but to see results, it is important to be consistent.

When first beginning this new cycle of eating, do not be surprised if you feel extra hungry or cranky. After getting past the first couple of weeks, many people report feeling better than ever before.

Intermittent fasting is unique to other forms of dieting because you do not necessarily have to change what you eat to see results. Of course, this does not mean that you can consume high-calorie junk food during eating periods.

Experts recommend eating a variety of foods with key nutrients that will help you continue to feel good even during fasting periods.

As you become more mindful about the type of foods you are eating, intermittent fasting can help protect different organs from disease. There is considerable evidence that maintaining this diet can prevent, and may even reverse, some chronic diseases, including heart disease, type II diabetes and age-related neurological disorders.

Studies have found that such benefits may be associated with molecular changes that occur in multiple organs around the body.

It should be noted, however, that this type of diet may not be safe for everyone, especially those who are pregnant or breastfeeding, or diagnosed with some illnesses.

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