72-hour Coconut Water Fast in the Name of Science and Health!
While having no food for 3 days may sound extreme to you, many cultures and religions engage in fasting as part of their practices. Think of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, the Christian season of Lent, or the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur. Other religions and philosophies that practice fasting include: Buddhism, Judaism, Taoism, Jainism, and Hinduism.
Some cultures even fast for non-religious reasons. Take the town of Geneva, Switzerland, for example. Every year they engage in the “Jeune genevois” or “Fast of Geneva.” This is a public holiday and day of fasting occurring in September. The holiday finds its origin in the Middle Ages. Back then, some days were officially declared to be fasting days as penitence after calamities such as wars, epidemics or diseases such as the plague.
BUT WE (MY HUBBY @MENTA AND MYSELF) FASTED IN THE NAME OF SCIENCE AND HEALTH!
Fasting has been around for centuries and will continue to be a regular practice for many cultures in the future. But what does science says about this age-old practice?
Image Source: Stock Photo
Are we eating too much?
While many believe it’s an unhealthy and even dangerous practice, if you are no stranger to the natural health world then I’m sure you have heard about the amazing potential health benefits of fasting or intermitted fasting.
If this sounds too hippy-dippy or surreal for you, science actually agrees. Have you ever written down or displayed all the food you eat daily? I’m sure you will be amazed by the volume.
Think our ancestors had plenty of wild foods? Think again!
Though food and eating come naturally to us, our ancestors didn’t have a grocery store with a million options to fill their bellies. Though you might have a Flintstone-like picture of huge t-bone steaks in mind when thinking of our ancestors, the truth is they did not always have access to food. They ate when they had food and fasted (involuntarily) when they didn’t find any.
Just as animals, our ancestors weren’t eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner every single day. Sure they feasted on the catch of the day, but don’t think they were so lucky to catch or find something every day. They often went without food for long periods of time in between each catch or find.
The science around fasting
Many studies have shown that fasting for just 3 days can have a tremendous effect on our overall health. According to a study supported by the National Institute of Aging of the National Institutes of Health, fasting not only boosts the immune system but regenerates it entirely, helping to ensure a long and healthy life.
According to these scientists, this is the first evidence of a natural intervention triggering stem cell-based regeneration of an organ or system. The study shows that cycles of prolonged fasting not only protect against immune system damage but also induce immune system regeneration, shifting stem cells from a dormant state to a state of self-renewal.
Though they focused their study around people receiving chemo, imagine the preventive, immune boosting and regenerative effects fasting can have on all people.
Fasting to reset and renew your body
As noted by the scientists, this study has major implications for healthier aging, in which immune system decline contributes to increased susceptibility to disease. They believe prolonged fasting cycles — periods of no food for two to four days at a time for six months — can kill older and damaged immune cells and generate new ones.
Could fasting be the answer to a prolonged, healthy life? It just might be, if we may believe these scientists!
“We could not predict that prolonged fasting would have such a remarkable effect in promoting stem cell-based regeneration of the hematopoietic system,” said corresponding author Valter Longo, Edna M. Jones Professor of Gerontology and the Biological Sciences at the USC Davis School of Gerontology and director of the USC Longevity Institute.
“When you starve, the system tries to save energy, and one of the things it can do to save energy is to recycle a lot of the immune cells that are not needed, especially those that may be damaged. What we started noticing in both our human work and animal work is that the white blood cell count goes down with prolonged fasting. Then when you re-feed, the blood cells come back. So we started thinking, well, where does it come from?” he added.
During their research, these scientists found that prolonged fasting forces your body to use stores of glucose, fat and ketones while breaking down a significant portion of old white blood cells. Longo noted that during each fasting cycle the depletion of white blood cells induces changes in our body that trigger the regeneration of new immune system cells.
Prolonged fasting reduces the enzyme PKA (which has previously been linked to increased longevity in simple organisms) and IGF-1 (a growth factor hormone linked to aging, tumor progression and cancer).
Furthermore, the research also has implications for chemotherapy tolerance and for those with a wide range of immune system deficiencies, including autoimmunity disorders. Since my husband has an autoimmune disease, we were quite eager to try a fast for ourselves and see what all the fuzz is about!
Why coconut water fast
Though I have done single fruit or veggie fasts or juice fasts in the past, having no food at all sounded a little too crazy. So as the first step in our fasting for science and health adventure we decided to add coconut water to the game!
Though the research concentrated on water only, and that will be our aim for the future, coconut water fasts have shown some tremendous cleansing benefits and immune-boosting and regenerative properties too.
Coconut water fast is nothing more than abstaining from all foods and drinking just coconut water and water. Although coconut water fasting is not as popular as fasting using other fruit or vegetable juices it is equally effective. Though I must admit that this fast might not be for everyone. We feel very blessed to have so many coconuts growing around us! It is not the same if you use store-bought coconut water since they usually contain preservative sand other additives.
How does it work and be prepared to pee a lot ;)
Drink close to 1.5-2 liters of fresh coconut water a day. In addition to coconut water, you will have to drink a good amount of water too since coconut water is a diuretic. So be prepared to spend some time on the toilet. You will be amazed how much you will pee in one day! This is the reason why one should not fast exclusively on coconut water.
This is how a coconut water fast looks
What I’ve Learned From Drinking Only Water and Coconut Water for 3 Days
Though I was fully prepared to experience the real feeling of hungry, I wasn’t really hungry! Strange for a foodie like me, right? But like I said no real feeling of hunger after three days…. Although the desire to eat was there, no real hunger. So that was a bit disappointing, maybe a true water fast will get me that experience.
The first day was peanuts! I even met up with two lovely fellow steemians @isshappy and @selibre. The next day I felt focused and energized in the morning, but by the time we reached 2 pm all my energy was drained and I could no longer focus on writing and working.
Of course, you pee a lot and your sweat might smell a bit more. But that’s fine since that’s a good sign of toxins leaving your body.
For both my hubby and me, fasting caused mild headaches at some points in the morning. Which could be due to the going-without-coffee-in-the-morning syndrome.
Everything tastes so good now!!!! Unfortunately, I'm sure the feeling will not last!
Today, I had my first green smoothie and a salad and wow the taste. During the 3-days and just after all your senses (especially smell and taste) are heightened. That smoothie has never tasted so good! I can’t really put the feeling or taste in words, but it’s like discovering a whole new world of flavors.
All in all, this was an amazing experience we will keep repeating from now on….
Ohh also, today both my hubby and I feel energized, focused and ready to tackle the world! There is some kind of a clear feeling in my head that I can’t put my finger on….
Fasting a success? I would say so! We’re in for more!!!! Too bad we will not be able to follow this up in a lab and see what happens inside!! But let’s trust these scientists.
ALL CONTENT IS MINE AND ORIGINAL!
PICTURE(s) TAKEN WITH FUJI X-M1 AND OUKITEL PHONE C5 PRO
The purpose of fasting is to develop the quality of righteousness, inwardly and outwardly, by abstaining from sinful deeds and training ourselves to control our thoughts and desires. More importantly to understand the importance of food in our lives, feel the kind of pain people go through because of scarcity of food, if you fast you will show sympathy towards starving people and you will make sure that nobody should be starving on our streets.
I did a one day lemon-water fast and cleanse and it really did feel great and I definitely saw the benefits of it - I just love food too much to motivate myself to do it again. You're right though, the human diet has changed. Humans back in the day would go days without food when they were hunter and gatherers. Now studies saying small meals throughout the day isn't healthy for you - that used to be the health craze for the longest time! Since I have weekends off I feel like I can plan one or two days of fasting again and I just might try the coconut water too! Thank you for sharing @amy-goodrich
Thanks for your comment @kontora! Since coconut water fills up your belly more than water, I never had the feeling I was hungry! I'm sure you can do it too! take care and good luck if you try the coconut water fast!
An excellent piece. Had a coconut just like those on the photo when I was in India every day after yoga practice, it felt very nurturing. As for fasting it is a very healthy practice. It induces ketosis and significantly reduces cholesterol levels. I do serious detox programs twice a year and feel great afterwards. Headaches are a normal side effects for first two to four days (especially if you are a coffee drinker). My brother on the other hand eats every other day (does intermittent fasting) I believe its very healthy but it takes a special level of dedication/craziness. I like your blog will follow.
Thank you so much for sharing this! It feels so good indeed! I would love to go to India one day to practice yoga with the masters! It is def on the list! I'm going to look into the IF or regularly do this 3-day fast! First some more research! Have a great day!
Fasting is very good for you. Friends of mine do it regularly and I intend to start doing it also. The stem cell regeneration and killing off of dead cells seems to be genuine. Mice that are forced to fast in labs live longer than mice that can eat whenever they want.
I have a coconut tree in my backyard :) This should be easy for me to do. I just need someone to go up there to get them.
Hehe! They are indeed not easy to collect! I'm sure you will find somebody if you are willing to share the bounty! Always works here! Nothing better than a fresh coconut! Enjoy the weekend!
I like to do some intermittent fasting, but not for three days. I think with my activity level, three days would be really tough to pull off.
When I do an IF day, I will still drink green tea, and that helps a lot with the caffeine withdrawals.
I don't think I could do the coconut fast, because I friggin hate coconut water.
Kudos to you for doing this, and thanks for spreading awareness about the benefits of fasting. Great article and great links too.
Thank you @cavemanrob! I'm researching the topic more! I was actually surprised how easy it was the three days. But three was enough though! I will look into IF too! Have you ever tried the coconut water straight from coconut? Not quite the same thing as buying it in a carton in the store. Thanks for your input and sharing your experience with me! Much appreciated!
I have done short fasts before and they really do give your body a break! If i had access to so many coconuts I would do this too. Coconut water is better for electrolytes than any Gatorade. And the smoothies are sooooo good! Oops, now Im hungry Lol
Hehe! I totally agree! Fresh coconuts are so good! This was the first water fast for me too. I have done strawberry fast, raw veggies fast, and other fruit fast before. But never water and coconut water only! Thanks for stopping by!
hippy-dippy-LOL, my perspective, Eat Breakfast like a King, Eat lunch like a Prince and eat supper like a poor person. This is a great read, thanks for sharing. I do already follow much of what you have written. I eat more often, small portions, not the typical 3 meals a day. More like 7 snacks a day, up until 7:00 pm, starting my day at 6:00 am.
That's a good routine to stick to! thanks for taking the time to comment! Your support is appreciated ;)
So many eye-holes!
Hehe! There were a few more... this was from 1.5 day.
Upvoted! I would so try this if we had access to coconuts. We fast on Yom Kippur every year. But we have done a few various cleanses over the last couple of years that were beneficial we think. My favorite was veggie juicing for a straight week. It changed my body and taste buds and ever since I will go through raw veggie cravings. I can easily eat my garden greens raw.
I bet hardest part was giving up that morning coffee. :) Great post!
Same here! Missed my cup of joe in the mornings! I'm glad to hear you had great experiences with it too! It really does change your body and taste! Raw veggies are so good! I love them! Also, I'm feeling grateful every day to be able to live here and enjoy the abundance of fresh coconuts! Thanks for sharing your experience! Much appreciated!