Therapeutic fasting
synonym
Therapeutic fasting, diet, nutrition, weight loss
What is therapeutic fasting?
The original purpose of therapeutic fasting lies in the "detoxification" and "Detoxification"Of the body and serves to regenerate body and mind, not losing weight. Pollutants that accumulate in the body due to unhealthy lifestyles, the environment and metabolism, so-called "slags", should be eliminated and the body should emerge healthy and strengthened from the cure. For decades, therapeutic fasting has been touted as a cure for body, mind and soul and is often used in the context of weight loss. However, this does not correspond to the actual purpose of therapeutic fasting.
Fasting from a health-promoting point of view
Unlike the multitude of religious fasting rites / Lent The numerous different approaches to therapeutic fasting are all about sanitary and not religious Aspects. The underlying goal of therapeutic fasting is a better health situation for the body and a improved wellbeing to accomplish. Most of the processes referred to as therapeutic fasting have not been scientifically proven. For this reason, therapeutic fasting as a kind of Fast a large psychological component can be assumed. Similar to those common today Diets, the various fasting cures are often named after their inventors.
Overview of our fasting topics
- Fast
- Lose fasting
- Fasting Instructions
- Fasting story
- Fasting Risks
- Lent
- Therapeutic fasting
Instructions for therapeutic fasting
Therapeutic fasting is a naturopathic therapy for body and mind that has been practiced since ancient times. It was carried out in the Middle Ages as well as today to detoxify the body, it is also said to help with numerous health complaints and have a positive effect on the psyche. There are different variants of therapeutic fasting, including, for example, the therapeutic fasting according to Buchinger, the Franz-Xaver-Mayr cure, the therapeutic fasting according to Hildegard von Bingen and many more.
In addition, with intermittent fasting, for example, one or more days of the week are avoided for a certain period of time. That includes that Dinner canceling or Intermittent fasting. The classic variants of therapeutic fasting are all similar and consist of different phases. A therapeutic fasting regimen should be thought out and planned as well as possible, as beginners can make many mistakes. Often, weekends or vacation days are also recommended as a starting point. Some cures recommend so-called relief days before fasting, these include avoiding addictive substances, hard-to-digest foods and advocate a lot of fruit, vegetables and exercise.
Then the bowel movement is due. Glauber's salt is usually used here, Epsom salt can also be used. This is followed by the fasting days, which can look different depending on the type of fasting. How long this phase lasts is also very variable. The decisive factor is always your own physical and psychological condition and the side effects that occur. Fasting beginners should not fast for more than two weeks at a time or completely avoid solid food.
After the end of the fasting phase, one should not fall back into old, unhealthy eating patterns. Breaking the fast is usually done gently over two or three days. You should eat slowly and consciously, use fresh and natural ingredients and use easily digestible foods instead of ready-made meals. The body, especially the intestines, can gradually get used to solid food or an increased supply of food.
You can find more information here: Instructions for Fasting
How does therapeutic fasting work at home?
Therapeutic fasting was originally offered in monasteries, health clinics or seminars and was accompanied and monitored by a doctor. It is not only related to religious practice, but often also to non-denominational spiritual journeys to oneself and to one's body. With the right preparation and information, the implementation is certainly also possible realizable at home. However, you should be aware that fasting can and should consciously enable you to break out of a stressful, stressful everyday life. In any case, you should plan as quiet a time as possible, especially for the start of Lent, such as Weekends or vacation days.
Almost every fasting cure begins with the so-called relief days. Here the body is supposed to get used to the upcoming time of low food intake. Above all, easily digestible foods are consumed, such as fruit, steamed vegetables and plenty of fluids in the form of teas or clear soups. Dairy products, sugar, luxury foods, meat and fish should be avoided as far as possible. Before the start of the fasting days, the bowel is emptied, for this there are preparations from the pharmacy such as Glauber's salt, Epsom salt or enemas. This follows after the fasting days Breaking the fast and the Build-up days. Anyone who fasts at home and not under medical supervision should at least discuss their plans with their doctor beforehand. This can point out possible dangers and warning signs. At Malaise and weakness it may even be necessary to stop the fast prematurely. Especially during Lent, you should listen to your body and react to complaints if necessary.
What are build-up days?
Through the Build-up daysAfter the fasting phase, the body should slowly get used to food again. In the build-up phase, it is particularly important to pay attention to your body signals and to follow your feeling of satiety. It should only small portions are prepared and eaten with pleasure and without hectic. These should be fresh, natural and easily digestible dishes. Sugar, ready meals, alcohol and coffee should still be avoided. The amount you drink must also be taken into account during the build-up days. Spices and especially salt should only be used sparingly during the build-up days.
After a short fast, at least two or three of these build-up days should be carried out. The aim is to make a gentle transition to food and a normal diet Stomach cramps, malaise, circulatory problems, and digestive problems get ahead. Laxatives such as Glauber's salt or Epsom salt should no longer be taken, normally the intestine becomes active and works again through food and a sufficient amount of drink. However, it may take a few days for digestion to go smoothly again.
How much can / should I lose weight with this diet?
Actual The goal of therapeutic fasting is not weight lossas is emphasized several times at all points. However, if you do not eat solid food, you will also lose weight if the calories ingested are below the daily consumption. Especially at the beginning, a large amount of water is flushed out of the body along with the glycogen stores of the liver and muscles, resulting in weight loss up to two kilos can make up depending on the initial weight. Up to three kilograms or more can be lost in a short fast of two weeks, the effect also depends on the person's movement profile. However, after switching to normal eating habits, you should also expect to store the water previously lost and gain weight on the scales.
More information can be found here : Fasting for weight loss
Fasting according to Buchinger
The fast after Buchinger practice around 2 million Germans every year. The fasting cure starts with a so-called Discharge day, followed by five days of fasting and two days of rebuilding. On relief day, the body should be prepared for the upcoming period of fasting and previous one Ingestion throttled and the nutrition be changed. Do this in the morning, at noon and in the evening respectively fruit, Rice, various teas and potatoes can be consumed. On the first, third and fifth day of fasting, the Intestines be cleaned with the help of natural laxatives. These include: lemon juice, sauerkraut juice, apple cider vinegar, bread drink, plum juice and buttermilk as light laxative measures. A stronger discharge can with castor oil, Glauber's salt, Epsom salt, Sennes tea and buckthorn tea can be achieved. This Cleaning methods can also be supported with regular enemas in the intestine.
It is important during the Lent the regular and adequate intake of liquid. At least 3 liters of liquid should be consumed per day, which is divided into 1.5 liters of water and 1.5 liters of tea. In addition to the intestinal cleansing measures, the morning should be spent drinking enough. Vegetable broth or vegetable juice should then be used at lunchtime and fruit juice, vegetable broth or in the evening Lent tea to be consumed. After the 5th day of fasting, you have to slowly start building up your diet. It is important that you do not immediately start eating everyday and heavy foods again, as this would immediately destroy the effect of fasting. For this reason, it is advisable to drink fasting tea in the morning on the first day of build-up and to eat an apple or apple compote. In the afternoon a potato or vegetable soup and in the afternoon a fruit or fruit compote.In the evening yogurt, fasting tea, vegetable soup and crispbread can be consumed. On the second day of construction at Fast the morning is also to begin with fasting tea, with sauerkraut juice, drinking whey or 2 prunes. At lunchtime, a salad, potatoes, carrot vegetables or yoghurt is allowed, in the evening crispbread, herb quark, tomatoes and fasting tea.
Hildegard von Bingen
The abbess Hildegard von Bingen is not just for numerous alternative medicines known, but also for her Concept of therapeutic fastingwhich was already practiced in the Middle Ages. Even with the cure according to Hildegard von Bingen, “stressful” foods should be avoided and the body should emerge from the cure clean and strengthened. After one or more days of relief and colon cleansing, the actual fasting cure begins, which takes place in between six and ten days can last: The food here is mainly limited to Spelled products, Fruits and vegetables, plus a lot of water and tea.
For example, a day of the fasting cure starts with one Spelled coffeethat can be sweetened with honey or a portion of boiled Spelled meal with dried fruits and spices. At noon it will be one Spelled Vegetable Soup prepared according to the abbess's instructions, soup is also allowed in the evening. When it comes to drinks, you should primarily use fennel tea or fasting tea and still water. Next to it will daily exercise in nature recommended, so that the fasting experience should also be spiritually enriching. Here, too, the fasting days are followed by a few days to get the body used to food again.
Fasting cure according to Mayr
Another popular fast is the after Mayr. This is a much longer fast than the Fasting method according to Buchinger. All in all it is 21 days of fastingto go through. There are no advertised relief days at the beginning or build-up days at the end. Each morning of the 21 days is mainly concerned with the Colon cleansing in which the same tools can be used as in the Buchinger method. With the Mayr method, must solid food not be waived entirely during Lent. In addition to fasting tea, milk, bread rolls and a 30g protein supplement are also on the morning menu. At lunchtime, in addition to vegetable broth, milk and bread rolls as well as a 50g protein supplement are allowed. In the evening you can choose between the rolls and 2-3 slices of crispbread in addition to vegetable broth and fasting tea. The Mayr method is not a strict fasting cure liquid but also with regular solid food. Another very well-known fasting cure is named after the inventor Hildegard von Bingen. Her claim to a fasting cure was not exclusively physical and physical recovery, but her focus was on balancing the psyche and coming to terms with one's own soul. According to their concept, people should not practice radical, but rather gentle fasting. This includes eating a Lenten soup several times a day, which contains spelled grains, fresh grains and spices as ingredients. The patient should clean his intestines with ginger granules. The main drink of this cure is fennel tea, from time to time it is allowed to drink spelled coffee. Furthermore, von Bingen recommends drinking parsley-honey-wine in crisis situations during Lent.
How long should I fasting for?
Beginners should basically do it despite being over-motivated at the beginning do not overdo the fast. Sometimes serious side effects occur particularly quickly here. The recommendations vary depending on the concept of therapeutic fasting, but are mostly recommended between four and twelve days, a maximum of two weeks. Anyone who is already practiced and knows their body well and can also fall back on sufficient resources can definitely drag out a fasting phase. The prerequisite here, of course, is always the individual situation. It is best to get medical advice or even support before starting your project. Many clinics, monasteries or facilities offer introductory seminars, weekends or stays that provide detailed information about fasting, facilitate entry and support.
Side effects of therapeutic fasting
Especially in the first days of the fast, participants have to deal with, among other things, severe side effects. The “sugar deprivation” that is experienced in most cures is most often expressed a headache. Also Loss of performance, difficulty concentrating and dizziness can occur, in addition, many people suffer from severe irritability and decreased drive. It is important to ensure that you drink enough water as part of the therapeutic fasting cures. Exercise in the fresh air can also alleviate the symptoms, but strenuous sporting activity can be too stressful and should be avoided. Another point of criticism: During a fasting cure, dinners or parties in the company are difficult to survive. Many also take a targeted break from everyday life and work for fasting and attend seminars or choose special fasting clinics to carry out therapeutic fasting.
More information can be found here: Risks of Fasting
What are the risks / dangers of this diet?
Particularly in the first days of therapeutic fasting, the withdrawal of sugar in any form often leads to physical complaints. This includes Headache, dizziness, performance kinks and moodiness. Physical activity or activities in everyday life and at work can be restricted, and well-being can suffer. A healthy person with sufficient reserves will tolerate abstaining from solid food for more or less long, but the body should not be overstrained, especially the first time fasting. Anyone who eats a very low-calorie and unbalanced diet beyond the recommended fasting period also risks health consequences, for example Nutritional deficiencies.
How can I prevent the yo-yo effect during therapeutic fasting?
Especially after the end of the fast, when solid food and especially carbohydrates are used again, can do not avoid an increase. The water that previously left the body with the glycogen stores of the liver and muscles is stored again and is reflected on the scales. Since too few calories have been saved in a few days of fasting to achieve serious permanent weight loss, those who want to lose weight will quickly be disappointed. If you consume more energy than you actually need after finishing the therapeutic fasting, you can even put on additional weight. Again, it should be emphasized again that the primary goal of a fast is not weight loss! However, it can help you start a healthy lifestyle and change your eating habits.
More information can be found here: Jojo effect
Criticism of therapeutic fasting
One point of criticism of the diet is the approach: The “waste products” from which the body is supposed to be freed by a therapeutic fasting cure are not scientifically sufficiently defined and proven. Decomposition products and pollutants from the metabolism are excreted if the kidneys and liver function properly, even in a normal lifestyle. Nevertheless, there are numerous indications of the positive effects of therapeutic fasting cures. Especially those Change to a body-conscious, healthy lifestyle should be rated positively.
The purpose of therapeutic fasting is often misunderstood. Anyone who claims to lose a lot of weight in a short period of time and maintain it permanently will be disappointed. Only a balanced diet and sufficient exercise or sporting activity that creates a calorie deficit can reduce and stabilize weight in the long term. In addition, the original therapeutic fasting should not only be reduced to cleansing the body, but should also be a time of spiritual experience represent. Implementation in everyday life is therefore difficult and may not bring the results that can be expected from a holistic fasting cure.
Medical evaluation of therapeutic fasting by
From a medical point of view, in a healthy adult in good physical condition, nothing speaks against the implementation of a short-term therapeutic fasting cure. One should undergo a physical examination at the doctor beforehand and have it checked if there are symptoms. If the side effects are too strong, you must also consider discontinuing the treatment. In no case is it advisable to fast too longe that the body is not used to. Here you risk serious health problems, for example caused by a Nutritional deficiency can be caused.
What alternatives are there to therapeutic fasting?
As already mentioned, it is therapeutic fasting not a diet that is primarily intended to achieve weight loss. Just as quickly as the lost kilos come back after a therapeutic fasting cure, those who want to lose weight also become after extreme diets such as mono- or so-called Crash diets after a short time return to their original weight. Here, too, a lot of water is initially lost and, thanks to extremely low calorie and protein intake, primarily muscle mass is broken down. These include diets such as the rice diet, Cabbage soup diet, the Metabolic diet and many more measures.
A sensible alternative to permanent weight loss and stabilization of the weight is only a balanced diet, in which all important nutrients are supplied. Many people use the concepts of low carb Diet that at least partially prevents muscle breakdown through a high protein intake. But also with Mixed dietsin which all foods are allowed in moderation, good results can be achieved. This in turn proves that losing weight is simple math: Those who eat fewer calories than they use lose weight.
What are the costs of therapeutic fasting?
There are a variety of providers who offer guided fasting cures. The prices vary widely and depend on the offers that are used in addition to seminars and instructions. Numerous clinics and hotels offer complete wellness packages for two or more weeks of fasting, which are included, for example Yoga classes, massages, spas etc. Self-payers will find everything they could want for a break from everyday life and the cleansing of body and mind. The prices range accordingly from several hundred euros to several thousand euros, depending on the desired offer. A fasting cure can of course also be carried out at home, there are instructions on the Internet. By doing without solid food or luxury foods, the expenses here are significantly below the expenses for the normal menu.
Does therapeutic fasting pay the health insurance?
Therapeutic fasting in an inpatient or outpatient setting is expensive and is used in the in the least cases covered by the statutory health insurance. Cures in hotels are not paid for, in the case of inpatient stays only if there is a strict medical indication. Approval of the application is generally difficult to obtain.
