Wellness via intermittent fasting
August 2023
Naini Setalvad delineates the benefits and method of intermittent fasting for leading a healthier and more spiritually enriching lifeIt’s a dirty world out there—and inside our bodies too! We accumulate toxins from our environment by breathing, through the food we eat, and by physical contact. We are exposed to air pollution, water pollution, radiation, and lack of sleep, all of which cause stress. We consume sugar and refined foods in excess and abuse our bodies with various stimulants and sedatives.
Stress triggers our body’s fight-or-flight re sponse, a primitive biochemical reaction that puts our body on red alert. If stress continues, our body reaches the ‘alarm stage,’ disrupting the functioning of the immune and circulato ry systems. Our body becomes less efficient at eliminating toxins, thereby increasing our tox ic overload. This can give rise to depression, irritability, poor performance, anxiety, mood swings, acidity, constipation, cardiovascular problems, and degenerative diseases, including cancer.
The best way to strengthen our body’s natural defences is to pay attention to our diet and its effect on our body. Here is where fasting comes into play.
According to the Indian tradition, one should stop eating by sunset and ‘break fast’ three hours post sunrise. This automatically means 12–15 hours of fasting. This norm gave the body rest and detoxified toxic materials and waste products, thus opening the pathway to natural self-healing and spiritual progress. Recently, this practice has gained tremendous popularity under the name of intermittent fasting. Here, an eating window of eight hours in 24 hours is provided during which two meals are allowed. No other consumption of food is allowed in between, except for an occasional tomato or a glass of buttermilk, This strict regulation of meal times helps balance the blood sugar levels
in the body and brings diabetes under control.
Benefits of intermittent fasting
• Aids the body’s elimination system in effec tively getting rid of waste
• May help shed significant amount of weight • Leads to improved wellness, concentration, and disease-prevention
• Increases vitality
• Boosts the immune system
Assess your toxic load: one point for every yes and zero for every no. If you score more than five, you need to fast.
• Do you feel tired when you wake up? • Do you suffer from skin problems? • Do you suffer from bloating after meals? • Do you have an alcoholic drink most days?
Food 41
• Do y o u
smoke or live with smokers?
• Do you rarely eat fresh fruit or vegetables?
• Do you eat red meat more than twice a week?
• Do you eat fried food and junk food? • Do you suffer from constant colds, hay, fe ver, or allergies?
• Do you have mood swings?
• Do you crave certain foods such as candy or bread?
• Do you put on weight easily?
• Do you find it difficult to concentrate? • Do you often have irregular bowel move ments?
Detoxify your kitchen
Clear your kitchen of all the fatty, sugar-lad en comfort foods that you reach for in times of emotional crises so that if you do go through a stressful time, there won’t be anything in the pantry that you should not eat. Throw out all the white flour, white sugar, and all the oth er packaged, processed, and refined foods you find there. Then restock your kitchen with nu tritionally sound food, using a shopping list for guidance.
Preparing to fast
• Eat as much locally grown produce as pos sible since it lessens the chemical load and retains more nutrition because it does not have to be preserved or flown across the world to you.
• Consume plenty of fruits, seasonal greens, and vegetables.
• Opt for whole grains (whole wheat, basmati rice, bajra, jowar, nachni, and brown rice), dals, cow’s ghee, and rock salt.
• Drink more water
• Avoid milk, curd, eggs, cheese, paneer, and non-vegetarian food
• Cut off alcohol
• Cut down on caffeine
Precautions
• Monitor your blood sugar, blood pressure, and sodium levels. One must always fast under supervision and constantly keep a check on the above-mentioned parameters.
• Avoid acidity by not staying hungry be yond your body’s capacity.
• Avoid eating overly processed foods as it will lead to indigestion and defeat the whole purpose of detoxifying your body.
Try to maintain a 12-hour gap between din ner and breakfast. If you can’t start the fast by sunset then at least start three hours before midnight and break your fast three hours after sunrise. This will be a 12-hour fasting window. Once you are comfortable with this routine, you can increase it gradually to 16 hours. And stay with that.
This way you can comfortably fast your way to a healthy body and a sound mind.
Recipe
MOONG SOUP
Ingredients
½ cup moong
¼ tsp hing
¼ tsp haldi powder
½ tsp jeera seeds
Salt to taste
Method
1.Wash and soak the moong for 3–4 hours in water.
2.Drain the water and cook the moong with water on a medium flame
3.Cook in pressure cooker till the moong dal is soft and mushy.
4.Allow the pressure cooker to cool and open the lid.
5.Blend the cooked dal in the blender until smooth.
6.Strain using a strainer and set aside. 7.Heat the ghee in a small pan. Add hing and jeera seeds. Sauté for a minute. Add haldi pow der to it.
8. Add the tempering to the blended dal with salt and boil for 3–4 minutes on medium flame. 9.Serve hot.
Naini Setalvad is a nutritionist, specialising in lifestyle and immunity disorders. Her foundation, Health For You, throws light on healthy food habits. Contact her at healthforyou@nainisetalvad. com