Doc May Diet - Episode #004 - Top 5 problems with Intermittent Fasting and the case for doing it Create too much stress - Not meant for everyone as it can create too much stress in certain people. I especially would not recommend fasting for high-stress individuals. High-stress individuals do not seem to respond well to fasting. High stress-high functioning individuals sure, but for those who seem to get run down, a lot and stress impact their immune system, probably not a good idea. They tend to actually hold on to body fat and burn muscle versus the intended effect of fasting which is to burn fat and preserve muscle. People think they can eat whatever they want during the window - This is simply not true. Food quantity and food quality still matter. Inflammation still matters. May feel like crap at first. When you first begin your fasting protocol, you may experience hunger pangs, headaches, irritability, anxiety, poor concentration, fatigue, trouble sleeping. All these will go away eventually but are very intense at first. And this is a potential issue because if you start your fasting during a particularly busy or important week you don’t want to crash in the middle of a big meeting or during a time when you need to be at your best so make sure you plan accordingly and prepare for this. Fasting is not safe for everyone. Special populations should actually avoid it. These include people who are trying to become pregnant or who are pregnant or breastfeeding, people with immunodeficiencies, people with current or past eating disorders, people with a history of brain injury, and people on certain medications such as birth control, blood thinners, and anti-depressants. The 12pm-8pm eating window isn’t all it's cracked up to be. The most common skipping breakfast method may not be as effective as once thought. Often times intermittent fasting is pitched as “well, it's not that different from how you’re eating now, all you need to do is just skip breakfast.” One thing that isn’t taken into account with this method is that the vast majority of your “fasting” hours are spent asleep. Sounds great, I know, but you’re not really burning as many calories when you’re sleeping. 5 reasons to try it Great weight loss method. Fasting has been proven to improve insulin sensitivity. The more sensitive we are to insulin, the more efficient we will be able to digest and assimilate carbohydrates. Great for the brain - fasting will help increase focus, and also protect against neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Reduces inflammation Good for heart health - blood pressure, cholesterol, triglycerides, all those markers all improve. And with heart disease being the number one cause of death, I think we should try and normalize fasting as much as possible. Anti-aging and anti-cancer - Speaking of causes of death, fasting has ALSO been shown to have anti-aging and anti-cancer properties. One study showed, albeit in animals, that animals who fasted had an 83% longer life span than those who didn’t.