All health experts vouch for a healthy diet, which may play a huge role in bringing overall wellness along with controlling common illnesses and serious diseases. It is said that a good diet may help pervade or control obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular diseases. For quick weight loss, people often for fasting but many people say it may not be good for health. A recent study attempted to give a clear picture of how fasting may actually be a good way to start off a diet for weight loss as well as to control other lifestyle-related problems.
A research group led by Dr Sofia Forslund and Professor Dominik N. Muller from the Max Delbruck Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC) and the Experimental and Clinical Research Center (ECRC) studies how changes in diet affected metabolic syndrome in the body. The results were published in the journal Nature Communications.
The group roped in hypertensive metabolic syndrome patients and observed the effect of a 5-day fast followed by a modified Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension diet. It was seen that fasting diet reduced systolic blood pressure, need for antihypertensive medications, body-mass index at three months post intervention compared to a modified Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension diet alone.
Andras Maifeld, first author of the study said, "Switching to a healthy diet has a positive effect on blood pressure. If the diet is preceded by a fast, this effect is intensified." As per the paper, periods of fasting and refeeding may reduce cardiometabolic risk elevated by Western diet.