A Healthier You

What if I told you I could change your life, for the better, by giving you valuable information to improve your health? Would you be excited? What if I told you that not only is the advice free, but that to make the change wouldn’t cost you a dime? No gimmicks. No tricks. Just understanding your body based on science. Intrigued? Keep reading.

If the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that underlying health conditions make the COVID virus especially deadly. Many of those underlying conditions…like heart disease, high cholesterol, diabetes can be linked back to what we eat. We are responsible for what we put into our bodies. There is no time like the present to take action and become a healthier version of you.

Earlier this year, at the start of lockdown #2, I was looking for ways to improve my health long term to reach my goal of living an active life until 90.

I found a video by Dr. Jason Fung. He is a nephrologist (kidney doctor) by trade, but an expert in the use of intermittent fasting and low-carbohydrate diets for the treatment of Type 2 diabetes. His knowledge also applies to obesity and anyone who wants to lose weight and improve their health. If you can find a few minutes, google his name and you will many videos. I particularly like “The Aetiology of Obesity.”

What I love is how he explains who the body stores energy in two ways. This is the two compartment problem. Your body has a fridge (carbs and sugar, easy to burn fuel) and the freezer (stored fat.) If you graze during the day and eat from the time you wake until you sleep, your body has a constant supply of energy in the fridge. So it doesn’t burn the fat.

To get to the fat, you need to get to the freezer. How do you do that? You need to lower your insulin levels to start burning that fat. That means cutting carbs (the goal of the keto diet) or you can fast.

It’s as simple as that. Leave a greater amount of time between your “eating window” and your “fasting window” and you can lose weight and be healthier. This is where you see reference to 8-16, which would mean you would eat whatever you want between 9 am and 5 pm (or any 8 hour window that suits you) and then fast the other 16 hours.

During the time you are fasting your body burns the stored fat as fuel.

To understand just how great the health benefits of intermittent fasting are, I like the video by Dr. Berg “The Most Important Benefit of Autophagy Will Surprise You.” In this video I learned a new term: autophagy. This is the body cleaning out damaged cells in order to make room for newer healthier cells. Basically, cell recycling. It reduces your risk of chronic disease. It’s anti-cancer. This 6 minute video is fascinating.

It’s commonly accepted that intermittent fasting causes weight and body fat loss and increased fast burning. It also lowers blood insulin and sugar levels. Other exciting possibilities are: reversal of Type 2 diabetes, improved mental concentration, more energy, increased growth hormones, improved blood cholesterol, activation of cellular cleansing, reduction of inflammation and possibly a longer life.

If you already are doing intermittent fasting then that’s amazing. The rest of us are late to the party.

Why is this information not being sung from the rooftops if it has such positive benefits? The honest truth is that’s is free and you get healthier by not doing something. There is nothing to buy. You may need less prescription medication. In fact, there is a cost savings.

The most interesting piece for me the impact that intermittent fasting can have on reducing inflammation in the human body, which is so common after accidents. Inflammation leads to pain which leads to a decrease in quality of life. Watch a short 11 minute video by Dr. Berg – On Causes of Inflammation. He specifically talks about “old injuries” and how intermittent fasting can help. There are so many of your reading this newsletter that are suffering from old injuries. This could be a game changer for you.

You all know what I am a lawyer, not a doctor. So do your research and speak to your doctor if you think that this is something you want to try.

We’ve passed this information onto family, friends and colleagues and the resounding feedback is that it works; it’s not nearly as hard as you think it might be and most of all – why didn’t anyone tell me about this sooner?