What if we could tap into our ability to burn the most harmful fat, the visceral or belly fat surrounding many vital organs, and reduce our risk of chronic disease, simply by changing when we eat?
Well, we can.
If you missed this week’s episode of The Doctor’s Farmacy, I was joined by Dr. Valter Longo to discuss fasting and its effects on healing, longevity, weight loss, and more.
One major benefit of fasting, even short-term fasts, is a boost in burning dangerous belly fat. This type of fat creates inflammation throughout the entire body and alters hormones, increasing the risk of diseases like type 2 diabetes and heart disease.
Valter is known as a longevity guru and his research in the field of fasting led to the creation of the Fasting Mimicking Diet and his incredible new book, The Longevity Diet. He is also the Professor of Biogerontology and Biological Sciences and Director of the Institute of Longevity of the School of Gerontology at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, among many other impactful roles.
Throughout this episode, Dr. Longo and I talk about the different ways to approach fasting and what the science says about its impacts on health. It’s interesting to note that many traditional cultures and religions incorporated fasting as a regular practice, which is perhaps evidence that our ancestors knew of the benefits of fasting all along.
While some fasts can be really difficult to sustain and leave you feeling “hangry” and deprived, Valter’s approach to fasting with the Fasting Mimicking Diet is centered around eating the right foods in the right amounts at the right times, over the course of five days. It tricks the body into thinking it’s fasting (while reaping the benefits of fasting) without the starvation factor.
We explored all this and more on this week’s episode, I hope you’ll tune in.
Wishing you health and happiness,
Mark Hyman, MD