Posted on 06/17/2014 12:49:38 PM PDT by Phillyred
Fasting for as little as three days can regenerate the entire immune system, even in the elderly, scientists have found in a breakthrough described as "remarkable". Although fasting diets have been criticised by nutritionists for being unhealthy, new research suggests starving the body kick-starts stem cells into producing new white blood cells, which fight off infection. Scientists at the University of Southern California say the discovery could be particularly beneficial for people suffering from damaged immune systems, such as cancer patients on chemotherapy. It could also help the elderly whose immune system becomes less effective as they age, making it harder for them to fight off even common diseases. The researchers say fasting "flips a regenerative switch" which prompts stem cells to create brand new white blood cells, essentially regenerating the entire immune system. Related Articles Bosses should allow staff afternoon naps at work to boost productivity, scientists say 05 Jun 2014 Sleeping with light on increases risk of obesity 30 May 2014 Watching pornography damages men's brains 29 May 2014 Retirement is liberating – I’m learning to foxtrot 08 Jun 2014 Clients not wedded to Ayesha Vardag’s big day 08 Jun 2014 Why brights are big this season - and how to wear them 08 Jun 2014 "It gives the 'OK' for stem cells to go ahead and begin proliferating and rebuild the entire system," said Prof Valter Longo, Professor of Gerontology and the Biological Sciences at the University of California. "And the good news is that the body got rid of the parts of the system that might be damaged or old, the inefficient parts, during the fasting. “Now, if you start with a system heavily damaged by chemotherapy or ageing, fasting cycles can generate, literally, a new immune system."
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
Throughout our evolution our ancestors went from feast to famine. It would not surprise me that some of our body processes are dependent on starvation to kick the. Off. Modern Americans never go without, constantly eating like hogs being prepped for slaughter.
I myself have been thinking of undergoing a 2 day fast for a couple of months now.
I have two pieces of advice for ANYONE who wants to try this stunt:
1) Make sure you’re healthy - if not (i.e., diabetes comes to mind, but probably lots of other conditions), then make sure a doctor knows about it (and then tells you to come to your senses).
2) Assuming healthy, then DO NOT, under any condition, tell your doctor what you’re doing, or you will be taken out in a STRAIGHT-JACKET, and held involuntarily for as long as legally allowed while the shrinks try to figure out why you have such a DEATH WISH.
p.s., I’ve gone 9 days with only water a couple of times, and many times 5 days and beyond - and no, I never told a doc. I love it.
“I proved this to myself on a recent trip from Illinois to Orlando “
When you fast (according to the article) your white cell count goes down meaning you are less able to fight off disease. You didn’t get a stomach ache because you didn’t eat the bad food!
bkmk
Worth the experiment, but I was thinking more along the lines of clear liquids.
Uh, he did say "budweiser", so what's the problem?
Low octane.
Yeah, there is that.
Two questions.
1. Is coffee allowed on this fasting thing?
2. Are cream filled doughnuts allowed?
oh, was there a conversation?
do the researchers respond to you?
hilarious
hilarious
I thought the conversation was occurring between the members of this board. Obviously, you have no interest in participating in an exchange of ideas, and prefer to throw out ignorant statements that show your total lack of knowledge of the topic at hand.
Idiot.
Well now with the excuse to raise the gas prices it may come to a point where I cannot afford to eat.
the Californian calling someone an idiot. that’s rich
It has not been my experience that doctors will have a problem with a 2-3 day fast, as long as you are healthy and you keep your liquid intake adequate. If you are talking about a 10-day or 30-day fast, then they may bring out the straight jacket... :-)
You obviously cannot read and comprehend plain English - or you ignore my tagline... You are either just trolling to get a reaction, or you really are just obnoxious. Either way, I’m done with you. Have a nice life.
Hi, Hugin. You've got a couple of things mixed up a bit here.
Influenza is a respiratory virus which, entering the blood stream (like most other viruses) will cause systemic symptoms such as fever, chills, nausea, malaise, etc.
You are correct about this being different from what people refer to as the "stomach flu". That is a syndrome referred to as gastroenteritis.
The most common causes of gastroenteritis are viral, not bacterial, from norovirus and rotavirus. Then come the bacterial causes with Salmonella being most common of these. Even less frequent in the US are parasitic causes.
So, virus by far and away the most common but, of the less common bacterial causes, Salmonella is first.
CANCER PING to Tired of Taxes
This thread is a few days old. It may be an important breakthrough about cancer.
“Scientists at the University of Southern California say the discovery could be particularly beneficial for people suffering from damaged immune systems, such as cancer patients on chemotherapy. ... The researchers say fasting “flips a regenerative switch” which prompts stem cells to create brand new white blood cells, essentially regenerating the entire immune system.”
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It would be interesting if you would post about your fast and results . TIA
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