Fasting your way to health! Less food, more life.

[tgibson3770]

Health Benefits of Fasting

1. Fasting initiates rapid weight loss with little or no hunger. Most people are surprised at how little desire for food they have while fasting.

2. Fasting promotes detoxification. As the body breaks down its fat reserves, it mobilizes and eliminates stored toxins.

3. Fasting gives the digestive system a much-needed rest. After fasting, both digestion and elimination are invigorated.

4. Fasting promotes the resolution of inflammatory processes, such as in rheumatoid arthritis.

5. Fasting quiets allergic reactions, including asthma and hay fever.

6. Fasting promotes the drying up of abnormal fluid accumulations, such as edema in the ankles and legs and swelling in the abdomen.

7. Fasting corrects high blood pressure without drugs. Fasting will normalize blood pressure in the vast majority of cases, the blood pressure will remain low after the fast, if the person follows a health-supporting diet and lifestyle.

8. Fasting makes it easy to overcome bad habits and addictions. Many people have overcome tobacco and alcohol addictions by fasting, and even drug addictions. Fasting rapidly dissipates the craving for nicotine, alcohol, caffeine and other drugs.

9. Fasting clears the skin and whitens the eyes. It is common to see skin eruptions clear while fasting, and the whites of the eyes never look so clear and bright as they do after fasting.

10. Fasting restores taste appreciation for wholesome natural foods. People say that their taste buds come alive after fasting and that food never tasted so good.

11. Fasting is the perfect gateway to a healthful diet and lifestyle. Going on a fast gives you the motivation and enthusiasm to make a fresh start.

[renerian, BSN, RN]

Are you feeling tense today??? I liked the topic. You seem defensive???? Whats up?

renerian:confused:

[Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN]

(It's a free board.)

It's all i can do to fast the day before a procedure. I can't imagine doing this to myself at my leisure, unless this was for my faith.

[BBFRN, BSN, PhD]

I think Agent is referring to another board where the OP was preaching at overweight nurses and stating what a burden on society obese people are. https://allnurses.com/t42499-10-6.html

[renerian, BSN, RN]

OH gotcha. I wondered if I missed something? I used to be very overweight as a teenager, 180 at 5'2" and now I am 115 and 5'5" but only with hard, hard work. I would never preach on that.

Thanks for the tip lgflamini and yes it is a free board LOL.

I will check out that thread so I am better informed.

renerian

[agent]

I just dont understand the hard line "vegan"-type lifestyle I suppose...

is tgibson a vegan or just sort of a fanatic?

I'm not trying to be a troll, I just really don't understand the mentality!!

[renerian, BSN, RN]

I am a vegetarian and chose to do so as I do not like to have an animal die for me to meet my food needs. I have been one almost 7 years and I love it!

I do get a craving for a greasy burger sometimes though LOL. Vegies burgers are not big or greasy LOL. Love greasy fries too!

I don't preach to people on anything as we are all free to chose our lifestyles and our path in life.

renerian

[renerian, BSN, RN]

Thanks Agent for your reply. I hope I did not hurt your feelings as I did not mean it that way, I was concerned about you that something upset you on the board.

I know one time I got some nasty emails to my box about me and I was bewildered and hurt but I am rather whimpy/sensative LOL.

renerian

[Katnip, RN]

Again, just like in the milk post, where does this information come from? Where are studies?

I have nothing against other people's eating styles. Vegan, ovo-lacto, omnivore, it doesn't matter to me.

[agent]

Renerian, nothing against you.

I just wonder where these (what seems to be neurosis) stem from?

I wonder how ppl develop these eating preferences that seem to be in direct contrast to what society deems as normal eating habits.

[Nurse2bSandy]

I have undertaken several lengthy fasts for spiritual reasons. None were water only, but were either fruit juice or veggies only.

During each fast, once my body was done being shocked by the lack of food/digestive duties, I felt fine.

I did not feel miraculously healed from any infirmity though... I still wear glasses, still struggle with overweight, my skin still breaks out.

I did lose weight while fasting but found it again soon after, and I didn't go on an eating binge, it just naturally came back.

I'm not putting down anyone's method for cleansing themselves physically or spiritually... but what works for one is not a cure for all.

We all need to figure out what's best for each of us... be critical thinkers and not follow some popular idea that sounds like a miracle worker. If it sounds too good to be true... it probably is!

[Tweety, BSN, RN]

Originally posted by agent

Renerian, nothing against you.

I just wonder where these (what seems to be neurosis) stem from?

I wonder how ppl develop these eating preferences that seem to be in direct contrast to what society deems as normal eating habits.

Because normal eating habits are McDonalds. The normal American can't even eat three vegetables a day. Normal isn't healthy.

Why be normal anyway. Conformity leads to obesity and ill health. There's a lot to be learned from Alternative Medicine. Open your closed mind.

"Living in Harmony with Vegetarians

By Alison Green

The Washington Post, 8/25/95

I concluded, after careful consideration, that eating meat was incompatible with my values, even though I loved meat and didn't care much for vegetables. I was sure my tastebuds would rebel, perhaps hold a beansprout or two hostage in my mouth until I paid a ransom of a burger or strip of bacon.

Happily, it didn't work out quite the way I expected; my biggest problem as a vegetarian has not been the food--which I've found to be delicious and every bit as satisfying as meat--but the bewildering attitudes of my family and friends. Other vegetarians have the same complaints: the weird looks, the silly questions, the hostile interrogations. It seems vegetarians--12 million of us in the U.S. and growing daily--are a sadly misunderstood minority indeed. Thus, I've devised ten simple edicts for meat-eaters in their dealings with vegetarians:

Rid yourself of the idea that vegetarians are spartans who subsist on raw carrots and bean sprouts. The question I hear more than anything else is "What do you eat?" This one baffles me; how would anyone with a reasonably varied diet answer that? I eat spaghetti, stir-fry, hummus, stew, raspberry sorbet, minestrone soup, salads, bean burritos, gingerbread, lentil chili, lasagna, tofu kabobs, waffles, veggie burgers, artichokes, tacos, bagels, saffron rice, lime mouselline, wild mushroom risotto--what do you eat?

Learn some biology. I'm still not sure what to do with otherwise intelligent people who think a chicken is not an animal. For the record, vegetarianism means no red meat, poultry, or fish--nobody with a face. I can't count the number of times waiters have suggested the seafood platter as a "vegetarian" entree.

Especially if someone is a vegetarian for ethical reasons, don't assume they won't object to "just a little" meat in their meal. Would you accept "just a bit" of your cat, or "just a little" of Uncle Jim in your soup?

Quit lobbying for the meat industry. Carnivores seem to think that vegetarians are like dieters and that we want to cheat a little now and then. My father is convinced that if he can convince me of how good his corned beef and cabbage tastes, I'll give in and eat it. Friends try to get me to try "just a bite" of whatever meat product they're eating, on the premise that it's so good, I couldn't possibly pass it up. I sometimes think meat-eaters took their lessons in peer pressure from the bad kids in the anti-drug movies we used to watch in high school. Listen up: no matter how "good" you insist it is, we're not going to eat it.

When a vegetarian gets sick, don't tell him or her it's because of malnourishment. From the comments I hear when I have the flu, you'd think meat-eaters never get sick. When I get sick, there's always someone waiting to tell me it's because of my diet. In actuality, just as there are healthy and unhealthy meat-eaters, there are healthy and unhealthy vegetarians. (And by the way, studies have shown that vegetarians have stronger immune systems than meat-eaters.)

When you're in a restaurant with a vegetarian, have patience--eating out can be a challenge for even seasoned vegetarians. Despite the acceptance into the mainstream of a veggie diet, most restaurant menus are still cluttered with animal products. Some restaurants seem to have nothing but meat on their menus; even the salads have eggs or chicken in them! Don't complain if our attempts at ascertaining the exact ingredients in the minestrone seem like paranoia; experience has taught us these tableside inquisitions are warranted. After years of quizzing waiters and waitresses, I've found that items described as vegetarian often contain chicken broth, lard, eggs, or other animal ingredients.

Don't make faces at our food. Before you scrunch up your face at my soy hot dog or tofu, think about what you're eating. Just because eating animals is widely accepted doesn't mean it's not gross.

Realize we've probably heard it before. One of the funniest things about being veg is the person who is positive that he has the argument that is going to change my mind. It's almost invariably one of these gems:

(a) "Animals eat other animals, so why shouldn't humans?" (Answer: Most animals who kill for food couldn't survive if they didn't do so. That's obviously not the case with humans. And since when have we looked to animals for our standards of behavior?)

(b) "Our ancestors ate meat." (Answer: Perhaps--but they also lived in caves, conversed in grunts, and had very limited choices of lifestyle. Supposedly, we've evolved since then.)

Despite popular opinion, you do not have the right to expect vegetarians to compromise personal beliefs for the sake of "politeness." People who would never dream of asking a recovered alcoholic to try their favorite vodka, or demand that someone who kept kosher have some bacon still think it perfectly reasonable to expect me to eat Aunt Sue's meatloaf because I adored it as a child and she would be ever so insulted if I didn't have some now.

Stop telling us humans "have to" eat meat; we're living proof they don't. People who otherwise respect my ability to take care of myself refuse to trust that I did not make the decision to become a vegetarian rashly. I've done plenty of research on vegetarianism--probably more than you've done on diet and nutrition--and I'm confident in the choice I've made. Are you aware of the studies showing meat-eaters are almost twice as likely to die from heart disease, 60% more likely to die from cancer, and 30% more likely to die from other diseases? I wouldn't be eating this way if extensive research hadn't convinced me that vegetarianism is healthier and more ethical than eating meat; a more appropriate question might be whether you can back up your diet.

Now go forth and exult in your smooth dealings with vegetarians. You might find things so harmonious that you'll want to try vegetarianism yourself."

[tgibson3770]

3rdshiftguy- Absolutely a wonderful assessment of a vegetarian!

It is time we take our health back! Live a little longer.