Can eating one meal/day on 8 days during 2 weeks cause permanent damage?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Muslims around the world keep a whole day fast during Ramadan (so a full month) and eat one hearty meal after sunset.

The upside is that because of this kind of extreme intermittent fasting, the incidents of cancer in Muslim countries in the Middle East is very low, even though they consume a lot of sugar and have other comorbidities.

Whaaat?

NP here. Yes it's so good for you. I am not Muslim but I fast during Ramadan (but I'll drink water during the day). Intermittent fasting sends the body into autophage (basically, since it's not busy digesting, it spends its energy on "cleaning house." Very much the historical human condition to not be able to graze all day, but only get one meal, and sometimes none. The body has adapted to it. And this minimizes insulin spikes--you only have one, or none, a day.

Maybe slims can eat twice a day during Ramadan. Before sunrise and after sunrise. Most people have at least tea/coffee and either a light breakfast.

That’s a funny autocorrect!
Obviously that was meant to say Muslims.

[Anonymous]

No. I’ve seen people do it for years. I’ve eaten nothing for 7 days dozens of times

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No. I’ve seen people do it for years. I’ve eaten nothing for 7 days dozens of times

If you don't mind me asking, why? Have you told your doctor?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Muslims around the world keep a whole day fast during Ramadan (so a full month) and eat one hearty meal after sunset.

The upside is that because of this kind of extreme intermittent fasting, the incidents of cancer in Muslim countries in the Middle East is very low, even though they consume a lot of sugar and have other comorbidities.

Whaaat?

NP here. Yes it's so good for you. I am not Muslim but I fast during Ramadan (but I'll drink water during the day). Intermittent fasting sends the body into autophage (basically, since it's not busy digesting, it spends its energy on "cleaning house." Very much the historical human condition to not be able to graze all day, but only get one meal, and sometimes none. The body has adapted to it. And this minimizes insulin spikes--you only have one, or none, a day.

DP. Thank you for sharing. Did you learn this information from a book or article?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For a brief period no. As a larger part of extreme dieting, yes. Anorexia absolutely can damage your heart.

I feel like someone willing to do an extremely low calorie intake for weeks without some very good reason might have a history of similar behavior.

When would permanent damage start to happen?

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What’s the reason for this, OP?

I had a coworker who ate like this for years and years and years. He seemed healthy, otherwise fine, and frequently exercised. I think it was one big meal though, so roughly 1000 -13000 calories a day. It was tied to a belief that living life on the edge of starvation extends lifespan (which does have some basis in fact).

I worked with a guy who only ate one meal a day - dinner - starting in college. He didn’t drink any alcohol or caffeine and was in his 50s. He was a healthy weight, on the slim side, with tons of energy. He didn’t seem to have health problems- I worked with him daily for years and I don’t recall him ever getting sick.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s the reason for this, OP?

I had a coworker who ate like this for years and years and years. He seemed healthy, otherwise fine, and frequently exercised. I think it was one big meal though, so roughly 1000 -13000 calories a day. It was tied to a belief that living life on the edge of starvation extends lifespan (which does have some basis in fact).

I worked with a guy who only ate one meal a day - dinner - starting in college. He didn’t drink any alcohol or caffeine and was in his 50s. He was a healthy weight, on the slim side, with tons of energy. He didn’t seem to have health problems- I worked with him daily for years and I don’t recall him ever getting sick.

Wow. Did he count calories?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For a brief period no. As a larger part of extreme dieting, yes. Anorexia absolutely can damage your heart.

I feel like someone willing to do an extremely low calorie intake for weeks without some very good reason might have a history of similar behavior.

When would permanent damage start to happen?

+1

If you are concerned that permanent damage may have happened, you need to meet with a doctor ASAP.

[Anonymous]

OP, if you don't have any health issues, and are under 50, I'd look up what the minimum nutritional requirements are for a day to keep the body in good health and make sure you're hitting the big beats with the 1 meal you have. If you do that, I'd think you could go for even longer than 8 days, but I'd check with a doctor just to be sure.

If you're over 50, that's when you really need to be careful and I'd definitely check with your doctor. You could potentially start a domino effect of issues that could be hard to turn around. I'm 58 and there definitely are more things I have to be careful about than when I was younger.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For a brief period no. As a larger part of extreme dieting, yes. Anorexia absolutely can damage your heart.

I feel like someone willing to do an extremely low calorie intake for weeks without some very good reason might have a history of similar behavior.

When would permanent damage start to happen?

+1

Anorexia can lead to permanent damage.

[Anonymous]

OP see a doctor and readjust your relationship with food. You can damage your heart and you can mess up your metabolism. You know you have a problem. Address it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No. I’ve seen people do it for years. I’ve eaten nothing for 7 days dozens of times

If you don't mind me asking, why? Have you told your doctor?

+1