What Are the Pros & Cons of Intermittent Fasting?
Intermittent fasting, where you cycle between periods of fasting and eating, is growing in popularity as a weight-loss tool. But does it really work, or is it another potentially unhealthy fad diet? The answer is complicated. Having studied and practiced intermittent fasting for the past two decades, Professor Mark Mattson, a neuroscientist at Baltimore’s Johns Hopkins Medicine, is the first to acknowledge its benefits.
“Intermittent fasting could be part of a healthy lifestyle,” he wrote in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2019. “We’re at a transition point where we could soon consider adding information about intermittent fasting to medical school curricula alongside standard advice about healthy diets and exercise.”
But the research is lean on long-term studies, and it’s up to every individual to assess their own needs and circumstances. “You would have to be careful about the duration of your fast, based on what you’re eating,” says registered dietitian, Megan Pentz-Kluyts. “I would definitely not recommend it without prior consultation with a doctor or nutritionist.”
Excerpted from BizNews
