Fasting and its benefits

Fasting helps to cure hundreds of diseases in human body. Allah has commanded us to fast for our physical and mental health benefits. Fasting has been a part of the treatment of illness since Hippocrates and Plutarch was quoted as asserting, ‘Instead of using medicine, rather fast a day’. Between 2008 and 2013 there have been a number of research studies suggesting fasting can have significant beneficial effects with people trying to beat cancer, halting cancer progression and improving survival A recent research shows that deprivation upto 10 hours for 24 - 25 days kills the toxic and bacteria that produces cancer cells and reduces the chances of cancer .

Fasting and calorie restriction can slow and even stop cancer progression, tumour growth and metastases. Both can kill cancer cells in their own right and significantly improve chemo and radiotherapy uptake and effectiveness. Fasting has also been shown to boost the immune system.

Many factors are at work during fasting, including less aggressive hormone production, less circulating ‘bad’ cholesterol, glucose deprivation and sirtuin stimulation. Sirtuins are highly protective hormones known to be produced under conditions of food deprivation. Food deprivation is also (not surprisingly) associated with leaner bodies.It is becoming increasingly clear that cancer cells are inflexible and need specific nutrients to encourage their growth, and without these nutrients the cancer withers. Maybe not all cancers, but many. Glucose is clearly one such nutrient, although there undoubtedly are others.

Fasting reduces plasma glucose, IGF-1 and insulin levels, starts to clean and de-fat both the liver and the pancreas and produces a state of ketosis which clearly has health benefits, one of those being to deprive cancer cells of nutrients. Cutting protein consumption has further anti-inflammatory and cancer-driving mechanisms.