Fasting is the willful act of abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both. Various dictionaries and encyclopedias describe it a little differently, but that's what it boils down to. The length of time for fasting depends entirely on the purpose for fasting or the intended results.
The English word "breakfast", meaning the first meal of the day, actually means to "break" the "fast" caused by sleep. Many people associate it with the morning meal, but a true breakfast can occur at any time of the day and depends on the sleep habits of each individual.
Religious and Spiritual Fasting
Since the dawn of mankind, people have been fasting for religious and spiritual reasons. When fasting for these reasons, it's usually accompanied by prayer. Religious and spiritual fasting can last for periods of up to 40 days.
Religious and spiritual fasting is the type of fasting most people associate the term with, but fasting is accomplished for other reasons as well.
Diet and Weight Loss
Modern research suggests that fasting is a viable alternative to reducing caloric intake. Studies on mice show that fasting for a day between two days of normal consumption is more effective than attempting to control what's consumed.
Clinical trials with humans confirm that fasting in this manner can lead to improved insulin and blood sugar levels, as well as numerous other health benefits.
Medical Fasting
Medical fasting is a 20th century method of setting a baseline for medical tests that need to be performed during or prior to a patient examination. These fasting periods can last from 8 to 24 hours.
Food is normally restricted for medical fasting, with liquids being constrained to water, unsweetened black coffee and unsweetened tea. Particular tests may require additional or different restrictions.
Other Health Benefits
Research suggests that the benefits of fasting can result in resistance to injury, prolonged lifespan, reduced risk of cancer, stress resistance and (of course) weight loss. Some research suggests that some diseases can actually be cured by water fasting.
Fasting should never be attempted by an individual who isn't eating nourishing foods on a daily basis. Doing so can actually cause health problems instead of benefits. As with any lifestyle change, fasting should start out with short periods of time and gradually increase to longer periods.
If you have any special health needs, consult a doctor before starting any regular fasting regimen.
Testimonials
An amazing story of fasting for other than religious and spiritual reasons is provided by Bernarr MacFadden. You can read his story of "A Seven-Day Fast. An Experience Of One Of The Authors".
You may also want to consider reading "Jim's Story: From Near-Death to Amazing Health in One Week". If the story is based on facts, it truly is an amazing story.
I have completed periods of 24-hour fasting many times myself, but I've never experienced any significant physiological changes. Of course, I don't have any unusual medical conditions that may or may not benefit from it. Well, I have one. I seriously doubt that fasting would have any beneficial effect on it, but I'm willing to give it a try.
As soon as I'm prepared, I'll be starting on 7 single-day fasts leading up to a single 7-day fast. I'm doing is as a test of theories and to prove people either wrong or right. Do you think I'll be successful? Do you think I'll suffer any ill effects? I certainly hope not.
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