From keto to intermittent fasting, people have changed their dietary plans according to what is trending among the health experts, nutritionists and fitness freaks. If you want to lose weight, intermittent fasting is the key to success, or so dietitians and fitness coaches claim. Intermittent fasting, which is in trend right now, is a diet routine in which people eat for 6 hours and fast for the next 18 hours. This diet routine mainly helps in weight loss through the breakdown of stored fats to generate energy in the body as we limit the hours of food intake. It reduces glucose levels and has innumerable health benefits such as lowering the risk of heart diseases, regulating blood pressure and lowering blood sugar levels. But are there no cons to this diet routine?
Intermittent fasting might be great for people who are into binge eating and have no fixed eating time hence leading weight gain. But people who have the following issues are not recommended to follow Intermittent fasting for these reasons:
Type-1 diabetes
Intermittent fasting might reduce the overall glucose levels but the levels see a spike during the fasting windows. This can be detrimental for the people with type 1 diabetes and cause irregularities in blood sugar levels causing the levels to go above and below the recommended levels. Since patients with type-1 diabetes take injections to control blood sugar levels, it is advised to consult the doctor before trying to go an intermittent fasting routine.
Digestion problems
Digestive problems like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or constipation may see an increase in the intensity of symptoms due to intermittent fasting. The 18-hour fasting window can cause a variety of problems like bloating, indigestion, constipation and more. The 6-hour window could gastrointestinal problems like too much gas, acidity, inflammation in the chest, etc.
Weak immune system and eating disorders
Proper calorie intake and lean muscle mass maintenance need one to eat properly and see if they have taken an adequate amount of macros in a day. If people with weak immune systems and eating disorders do so, their problems might further increase rather than get fit.
Other than these, people who are pregnant, have sleeping disorders, breastfeeding women, intense workout regime followers and people on medication that is to be taken after meals are to stay away from intermittent fasting. While intermittent fasting might be a good way to lose weight, the best way to stay fit and flexible is to do some exercise daily. Even if one cannot follow a heavy workout regime, light exercises every day help in maintaining longevity and keeping the immune system active.
