What Happens When you Fast for 3 Days

most of us have gone 12 or even 24 hours without eating at least a few times in our lives just out of necessity or coincidence but it's much less common for people to fast for 3 days in a row if you have never fasted before You' be surprised to know about the diverse health benefits of fasting so in this video we'll focus on what happens with your energy metabolism hormones and general body response to a 72 hours fast typically the human body's main preferred source of energy is glycogen which is a stored form of glucose when you digest your food your body breaks down carbohydrates into glucose which it stores as glycogen in the muscles and liver as long as you have glycogen stored up that's what your body will use for energy and this is what happens during the first 12 hours of fasting glycogen stores in the liver and muscles are converted into glucose which is then used for energy hormonal changes also start to occur during this stage in the few hours after eating your insulin levels will rise but after the 12 hours of fasting your insulin levels will drop significantly also there is this hormone in your body known as leptin whose main job is to Signal your body that you have enough food in your system the level of this hormone start to fall while grin the hormone that signals hunger will rise interesting things start to happen when your body passes Beyond 12 hours of fasting the glycogen soures of your body get deated completely which basically means that there is no Reserve glucose in your body so the metabolism basically shifts towards breakdown of fats your body starts to use a process known as lipolysis for energy lipolysis breaks down the triglycerides in your fat cells to use as a source of fuel also the levels of growth hormone in your body start to rise after about 12 hours of fasting growth hormone is released during fasting because it helps the body to conserve energy and use fat sores for energy it also supports the maintenance and repair of tissues essentially it's a body's way of protecting muscle mass and ensuring a steady energy Supply when food intake is low insulin levels start to drop significantly during this phase this is very important as high insulin levels lead to storage of fat in the body so when the insulin levels drop the body starts to use fat for energy in a nutshell low insulin levels in the body promote fat breakdown also known as lipolysis many people report improved mental Clarity and cognitive function during this phase of fasting after about 18 hours of fasting your body will transition into a state of metabolism known as ketosis which is when your body starts relying on fat as its primary source of energy ketosis promotes efficient fat burning and weight loss it also helps in reducing blood sugar levels and improving lipid profile you may be confused about the difference between ketosis and lipolysis let me break it down for you so the word lipolysis has two parts lipo meaning fat and Lis meaning breakdown in lipolysis fat is broken down into fatty acids and glycerol these fatty acids travel to the liver and there they are used up in the process of ketosis so the liver basically uses fatty acids to make energy this is a more efficient way of burning fat and leads to better weight loss during this phase the growth hormone levels of your body continue to rise insulin levels drop significantly as there's a decrease in glucose intake and utilization a hormone known as norepinephrine or Also Rises in the body this hormone stimulates the breakdown of fat cells into free fatty acids that can be used for energy enhancing the metabolic rate after about 24 hours of fasting your body starts to do something really interesting it starts to repair itself this process is known as autoag your cells start to get rid of any old components that are damaged or functioning poorly autoag is incredibly important for your health and has been shown to reduce inflammation kill cancer cells and clear out the misfolded proteins that lead to Alzheimer and many other diseases as autophagy declines naturally with age it's thought that fasting induced autophagy can be a way to reduce the effects of aging and indeed Studies have shown that fasting is connected to a longer lifespan fasting for around 48 hours can also be beneficial for your immune system it stimulates the production of

new white blood cells and improves your body's defense mechanisms This research suggests that an occasional 24-hour fast can also improve your cardiovascular health your insulin sensitivity also improves remarkably by this point protecting you against type 2 diabetes if you extend your fast Beyond 48 Hours your body fully adapts to ketosis you're now burning ketones for energy with efficiency which can lead to significant weight loss and even further improvements in bin function now there are several reported benefits of ketosis on brain function ketosis can enhance mental Clarity concentration and cognitive function this happens because ketones are a more efficient fuel source for brain compared to glucose it can lead to mood stabilization by affecting neurotransmitter levels many people report a reduction in brain fog and an increase in mental Clarity when in ketosis this likely happens due to a stabilized blood sugar level your growth hormone levels will also go up significantly in this phase stimulating faster muscle repair and preserving lean muscle mass the hunger hormone that signals your body that it needs food is known as grin the levels of grin will continue to rise and fall throughout the day but with lower and lower Peaks meaning that you won't feel as hungry as you did at the beginning of your fast at 54 hours your insulin levels will be at their lowest point yet your Ketone levels will increase further and to prevent muscle breakdown your body will break down Branch chain amino acids extended fasting also leads to better and more efficient autoing and a stronger immune system once you have gotten to the end point of your 72-hour fast you'll see one more benefit at this stage in your fast your igf1 or insulin like growth factor will decrease this triggers stem cell production these stem cells are the source for all new cells in your body as people age their stem cells begin to lose their ability to regenerate so this decline can make it more difficult to recover from infections or other diseases according to a new study from MIT biologists this age related loss of the function of stem cells can be reversed by regular fasting in our next video on this series we will talk about the benefits of fasting in great detail so if you want to learn more about fasting click here to watch that video bye and take care