A step-by-step 'simulation' shows what can happen to your body if you go without food for 36 hours.
If you don't eat food for a day and a half - and only drink liquids like water and coffee - it can potentially lead to a load of health benefits, according to some medics.
But before you try any sort of fast or dramatic diet change, you should definitely consult your doctor beforehand, as fasting isn't for everyone and does carry some risks.
Once you've got the go-ahead, and more importantly, the willpower, to try a 36-hour food-only fast, there are supposed benefits with each passing hour.
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Wellness Wise, a non-official health YouTube channel that produces content that is 'not a substitute for professional advice', shows some of the claimed advantages.
In an over-the-top 'simulation' video, the body undergoes a series of metabolic changes that go far beyond hunger.
Four hours fasting
Within the first four hours, digestion winds down as your body finishes processing your last meal. Insulin levels begin to drop sharply, signalling that no new food is coming in.
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"After just four hours, digestion shuts down, insulin drops fast, and your body flips the switch, burning up stored glucose for energy," the clip explains.
Eight hours fasting
At the eight-hour mark, 'blood sugar starts to dip, and your system begins digging into its backup reserves'.
12 hours fasting
12 hours is when it's claimed that 'the real transformation begins' in regard to 'fat burning'.
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This process is called 'ketosis' and your body turns 'into a fat-melting furnace' when insulin drops.
16 hours fasting
"By 16 hours, autophagy kicks in, your body's built-in detox mode," the video adds.
"It starts breaking down damaged cells, flushing out waste, and repairing from the inside out."
24 hours fasting
A day later, 'cellular repair is in overdrive' and this is when your body has the potential to burn 'pure fat now, with every cell in your body working smarter and cleaner'.
30 hours fasting
By 30 hours, growth hormone production surges dramatically. This hormone protects lean muscle tissue, enhances fat metabolism, and helps recovery.
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The increase in growth hormone also supports tissue repair and boosts the body’s ability to heal and rebuild itself.
36 hours fasting
"And when you hit 36 hours, your body hits peak autophagy," the video says.
"Dead cells are wiped out, tissues regenerate, and your metabolism fires on all cylinders. It's not just fasting, it's a full-body reset."
The problem with fasting
There aren't loads of human-backed studies when it comes to fasting because most are done with animals.
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“There [are] a lot of proposed benefits to [running on fats]. But a lot of the research hasn’t really [been borne out in] human beings. So we don’t see dramatic health benefits, certainly in the short term,” James Betts, professor of metabolic physiology at the University of Bath, told The Guardian.
Topics: Health
Anish Vij