[김형근 칼럼] Why is fasting good? Provides great scientific benefits as well as cultural and religious rituals

A traditional benefit of fasting as we know it is gut cleansing. In other words, the claim is that if you fast for 7 or 10 days, you will get rid of old toxins that are stuck in your stomach and intestines.

Sukbyeon, which is known to cause several diseases including constipation, refers to old feces that accumulate in our bodies.

In general, feces are excreted naturally through the intestines, but due to various reasons, some feces can remain in the intestine and harden or adhere to the intestinal wall and cannot be eliminated.

In addition to the idea of ​​removing old intestinal waste, it is also effective in delaying depression and aging.

These stools stay in the body for a long time and become dead stools. However, if a person gets hungry through fasting, this stool can be removed from the body. The solution is to hire.

Fasting has played an important role in various cultures and religions for centuries, both in the East and the West. Fasting plays an important role, especially in Buddhism, which originated in India, and Hinduism, the current dominant religion.

There are similar cases in China, Korea, and Japan in Asia, which have a big impact. Traditionally, fasting has been recommended for its cleansing and revitalizing properties.

So, is fasting scientifically very beneficial to our body and mind? Is the age-old tradition of fasting really the key to bringing about changes in the human body?

To address this interesting question, researchers at the Precision Medicine Research Institute (PHURI) at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL), UK, began a special experiment called ‘water fasting’.

We did this experiment with the aim of building a complete picture of how our bodies react when we cut out nutritious foods and replace them with water.

The research team conducted a ‘water fast’ experiment in which 12 volunteers consumed only water for 7 days and closely monitored the health of the participants.

In the ‘water fasting’ test, when he is hungry, every organ, including brain cells, is activated.

An important turning point in how the body reacts to fasting was made in a paper published in the latest issue of the famous academic journal ‘Nature Metabolism’. From the third day of fasting, noticeable changes occurred in my body.

In the first day of fasting, your body begins to use sugar for energy and gradually it will move to fat storage, which is called ketosis.

This means that when you rush as the body’s first response to get enough energy to survive, weight loss is the most fundamental change.

However, after three days, the body did not stop there and began a wider response, including changes in various organs and systems. These changes included changes to proteins in the brain, immune system, and which may support cell repair.

This means that when food is scarce, the body changes focus and enters a different state to protect itself more effectively.

The research team carefully analyzed nearly 3,000 proteins in the volunteers’ blood. Surprisingly, about a third of the proteins changed significantly during the fasting period.

These proteins, which are found in several organs and are involved in several biological processes, have shown that fasting produces responses throughout the body, not just in specific areas.

Interestingly, despite gender and individual health differences, changes in protein levels were consistent across all participants. This consistency suggests that the fasting procedure is a fundamental and deep response throughout the body.

This is an opportunity for organs that were regularly ‘lazy’ to be alert.

The research team explained, “Protein changes are a universal biological process that is activated to cope with the lack of nutrients entering the body and to optimize its function. to be done under sufficient conditions.”

To put it simply, if nutrition is not provided, each organ in the human body breaks away from its previous ‘lazy’ behavior and takes steps to survive.

The most active part is the brain cells. Ultimately, the explanation is that when neurons, which are nerve cells, are activated, cognitive functions work efficiently, which may play a large role in being prevents depression.

It can be seen as the same size. There is also research that shows that a fast or restricted diet can help our immune system fight cancer.

Fasting effectively reprograms the metabolism of some tumor-killing white blood cells, according to a new study in mice.

In a recent study, scientists at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center studied white blood cells called NK cells (natural killer cells) in mice.

Enhances anti-cancer effects by increasing the metabolic activity of white blood cells

NK cells are representative cells responsible for innate immunity and are a type of lymphocyte that is toxic to various types of tumor cells and virus-infected cells.

These cells make up 5 to 10% of human peripheral blood lymphocytes and, unlike T cells, grow best in the liver or bone marrow.

The immune system uses these cells to respond to threats to the body. Threats include viruses and cancer that attack from outside.

If the body can direct more of these immune cells towards the tumor, the chance of survival increases. However, when cancer occurs, NK cells are under a lot of pressure.

Recruitment could reprogram these NK cells to better survive in an oppressive environment, explained Dr. Joseph Sun, a psychologist at the cancer center who led the study.

The research team implanted tumor cells into mice. A rich diet was provided which could be eaten freely. As a result of the study, the research team stated, “We confirmed that fasting improves NK cell-mediated anti-tumor immunity.”

The research team explained that fasting increases resistance to tumors by increasing the production of cytokines, signaling substances that stimulate the body’s immune system. Cytokines are proteins that tell the immune system to keep doing its job.

“We found that the recruitment of NK cells was leading to the production of more cytokines in the tumor,” says psychologist Rebecca Delconte, PhD, who participated in the study.

Brain neurotransmitter neuron activation… Effective in preventing dementia and delaying aging

“Through metabolic reprogramming, these NK cells can survive even within the tumor environment. “It is also specialized to develop anti-cancer properties,” he explained.

Intermittent fasting, which has become popular recently, is effective in delaying aging.

This fasting is a type of diet that has been artificially modified to keep the fasting period above a certain level by repeating eating and fasting regularly.

Depending on the ratio of fasting time and meal time, the most common are 24-hour and 16-hour fasting. Furthermore, in most cases, it is attempted to change this ratio slightly depending on the practitioner.

This method of fasting was first recognized as a form of folk or fad medicine. And many doctors looked at fasting, which includes skipping meals on purpose without any particular reason, negatively.

However, as research continued on the effects of speed on the body, the theories that supported it gradually grew. Now, you will find doctors and scholars recommending immediate recruitment or using it yourself through the media.

Clinically, the situation has changed to the extent that trainers sometimes recommend light intensity intermittent fasting for obese patients.

Some of the latest advancements in the world of aging are based on fasting. This is a diet strategy that alternates between eating and fasting periods.

Now, it is being shown that fasting is not a traditional religious and cultural ‘myth’ but has a deep relationship with our health.