Dr. Jason Fung - 'Therapeutic Fasting - Solving the Two-Compartment Problem'
Low Carb Down Under7 HN recommenders · recommended in 8 months, 2017–2022
talk · general · evergreen · 2017–2022 on HN
Dr. Jason Fung, a nephrologist, explains therapeutic fasting as a treatment for obesity and type 2 diabetes. He frames it around the two-compartment problem of fat storage and insulin resistance.
HN commenters repeatedly recommend it as a free, evidence-citing overview of fasting that counters worries about muscle loss and safety.
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12 comments from Hacker News
An accelerated version of intermittent fasting is longer term fasting - ideal minimum being 3 days, although even only being able to handle 24 hours at first is a great start; the next ideal number of days is 5 days, then 10 days, then 20 days based on different changes that occur at those periods. I always recommend people watch this by Dr. Jason Fung: 'Therapeutic Fasting - Solving the Two-Compartment Problem' - ▶ this video
Most people are omnivores, not carnivores as PG stated - however the trend seems to be moving towards the health benefits of eating as carnivore - a purely meat diet; it's the food you don't eat that improves health, meat is a healthy food for most people. We have the sugar lobby who paid researchers to create propaganda that fat was the culprit. We have companies incentivized to sell fad diets, we have every participant of the food industrial complex trying to push for their product to be consumed - and we have governments who are trying to keep the lobbyists happy and perhaps for the purpose of keeping the economy stable. They all aren't going to be promoting or funding research that will give results against their own interests. Two videos I recommend everyone watch relating to diet: Dr. Georgia Ede - 'Our Descent into Madness: Modern Diets and the Global Mental Health Crisis' - link Dr. Jason Fung - 'Therapeutic Fasting - Solving the Two-Compartment Problem' - ▶ this video
Scientists/researchers in the past were paid by to say that sugar wasn't bad for you, and that fat was the culprit - we know this now to not be true. There's research that emerging that is it's what you don't eat that - it's people who are eating meat + other bad things that causes problems and then allows the connection to meat as possibly being linked as the cause; there's barely any research of people just consuming meats and animal products. Two videos I recommend everyone watch: Dr. Georgia Ede - 'Our Descent into Madness: Modern Diets and the Global Mental Health Crisis' - link Dr. Jason Fung - 'Therapeutic Fasting - Solving the Two-Compartment Problem' - ▶ this video Imaging meat is fine and it's when you hurt the body with other harmful foods that then causes your body to not function as well to process meat and other foods properly - and where other systems to clear/clean the body aren't or can't function optimally (think inflammation, insulin, excess of food/availability of calories, etc) - and not specifically because of the meat? It's hard to know if oneself is ideology or propaganda, we've all been bombarded by things like government sponsored (influenced by food industrial complex) Food Pyramids, etc. our whole lives - or by fad diets looking to make money and marketing their own flavour of diet. The list goes on. Real research will happen that cuts through the confusion, people are waking up.
Have you ever tried water fasting? The reason I ask/suggest is that when water fasting (which isn't starvation mode, starvation mode happens when you're regularly enough eating calories keeping your digestive system going - but not enough to actually provide your body with what it needs) is that when fasting your body 1) burns more calories so you'll have more energy available (to your body and brain) than if eating food, and 2) your body produces more adrenaline - so you have more mental energy too. I wonder if this relatively simple/quick "hack" could give you an experience that may help you have the mental energy, and get rid of brain fog that some foods you eat may also be causing you, to see if this shakes things up enough where your focus and therefore concentration sharpens? Start out with 24 hours while drinking a ton of water, and based on seeing how you feel - see if you can make it to 3 days (72 hours); starting at 7pm means at 7am you're already at 12 hours, and 7pm next day already 1 of 3 days done; you have to drink a surprising amount of water, I usually stop at 4pm so I'm not having to get up in the night. I recommend weighing yourself each morning and logging it just to have some numbers to passively start developing a more thorough understanding of how your body works in relation to food. Perhaps it sounds too simple, too good to be true, but I have had this experience and others too. Here's a 30 minute video by Dr. Jason Fung explaining by water fasting is
You didn't mention fasting (non-intermittent) so I'll leave this video here: ▶ this video - "Dr. Jason Fung - 'Therapeutic Fasting - Solving the Two-Compartment Problem'"
I wouldn't say there's any one good resource. Most people preach intermittent fasting, which I've found is okay for maintenance and health but it's not nearly as beneficial nor will it lose you as much weight as fasting for days on end. But here's some material I went over to educate myself and convinced me that it's perfectly safe: Fasting vs. Eating Less: What's the Difference? (Science of Fasting) link Dr. Jason Fung - 'Therapeutic Fasting - Solving the Two-Compartment Problem' ▶ this video Beginners Guide to Prolonged Fasting | 24-72 Hour Fasting Instructions link ^^ Not exactly a fan of Thomas DeLauer but there's some good information there. If you aren't faint of heart, check out some videos on the "Snake Diet" channel on YouTube. Cole is kind of a lunatic, constantly swears, and holds nothing back. He does this to be motivational. He's wrong about a few things(he thinks fasting cures everything and also thinks vaccines are bad), but when it comes to fasting properly he's pretty spot on. I just took from him what I thought made sense and left the rest behind. The best idea I got from him was the "snake juice", which is really just an electrolyte mixture you can make at home. It really makes all the difference. Overall, I wish there was someone who could preach this stuff without the Cole's level of insanity, but there you have it.
I've only done 3-days and not 7, but for n=1: - make sure to consume salt (adding to water is the easiest); if anything, err on the side of both too much water, and too much salt (we normally consume a lot of both through food). - Some people still consume certain zero-calorie items, like black coffee, green tea, or bone broth. You still get most of the fasting benefits, and it might be a good way to start (bone broth with added salt is a great way to keep electrolytes up, and fill your stomach). - I experienced a bit of back pain; apparently muscle pains are common, especially with new fasters. Accounts vary on this being evidence of "detox", or a side effect of mineral deficiency; but supplementing minerals in water probably couldn't hurt. - Dr. Jason Fung is a great resource: ▶ this video - You'll find it odd that you don't know what to do during mealtimes. :) Have a plan for another way to take a break during lunchtime, etc. - Optional: it's vastly easier if you start already in ketosis (IF and/or low-carb)
Some of the best info on this can be found in the book, The Obesity Code by Dr. Jason Fung. Also, here's a short video by him: ▶ this video
Here are a few good videos to watch: Dr. Jason Fung - 'Therapeutic Fasting - Solving the Two-Compartment Problem' - ▶ this video Dr. Georgia Ede - 'Our Descent into Madness: Modern Diets and the Global Mental Health Crisis' - link
Dr Jason Fung's "The Complete Guide to Fasting" You can get most of the same information from his online output, for free. I found this video especially interesting: ▶ this video
I am aware that extreme fasting is dangerous, but so is extreme water drinking.[0] But fasting in general seems to be stigmatised. Dr. Jason Fung [1] has some fascinating videos on Youtube about why fasting isn't bad. I am just curious why there's a mainstream view that it's bad and the exception is that it's good, vs the other way around? [0] link [1] link ▶ this video Edit: Dr. Fung points out one common misconception that fasting causes muscle to be eroded.
I read the link you posted [0] and it did not say distilled water is bad for you. I don't disagree with the statement "extreme fasting can be dangerous". > You have insecurity... Why are you making this personal? > break down your body, lose muscle, produce ammonia, urea, and all sorts of toxins, pull out stored toxins and use them because your body is so desperate on its low reserves of vital nutrients..and destroy your organs. Bravo! According to this video _none_ of that happens. He addresses all of those claims. (provides proof from actual medical studies) ▶ this video The medical studies he presents (not his own) state the opposite of what you are saying. If you don't want to watch the video, I think this article is similar: link This does of course detract from your argument that distilled water is bad for you. [0] link