Are Water Fasts a Good Way to Lose Weight?
Are water fasts an effective path toward sustained weight loss? Probably not, according to researchers from the University of Illinois Chicago. Study authors find that while a water fast (consuming nothing but water for several days) may help shed pounds in the short term, it’s unclear just how long that weight will stay away once solid foods come back into play.
Moreover, the other observed metabolic benefits of water fasts, such as lower blood pressure and improved cholesterol, appear to “disappear” quite quickly once a water fast ends. Despite all that, study authors also say they did not observe serious adverse effects associated with engaging in a water fast or any similar type of fast in which the dieter consumes a very small number of calories daily.
“My overall conclusion is that I guess you could try it, but it just seems like a lot of work, and all those metabolic benefits disappear,” says project leader and professor of kinesiology and nutrition at UIC, Krista Varady, in a university release.
Excerpted from Study Finds
