Fasting: Healthy Rule of Ancient India Or Just Superstitious
“Today is Tuesday and I’m fasting”! I’m sure you might have heard these words many times. In the Hindu religion, people worship their favorite deities and fast on auspicious days. There is a belief that worshiping on special days, may God bless us with health, wealth, and prosperity.
Fasting is a practice to learn self-control, forgiveness, and express gratitude.
Not only Hindus, but worldwide people of different religions do fasting. Like Christians fast during Lent, and Muslims fast during the holy month of Ramadan.
Fasting is an age-old practice by our forefather. Some believe it, and few say that it is superstitious. Fasting is the intentional refrainment from eating and drinking. It was always associated with better health. What is the connection between health and fasting? Let us find out the mystery behind fasting.
Why do we need fasting?
We eat different types of food every day. Digestive system works constantly to digest food. Continuous eating and digesting food make body mechanisms go down. Digestive system is crucial to supreme health. Spilling up the system accumulates toxins in the body, and this may be prone to severe health issues.
Just imagine, what happens to your car? When you Fuel and drive your car every day, without servicing for a long period of time, the engine may get damaged or shorten the life of the car. Servicing your car is essential. Periodic maintenance averts malfunctioning, increase the performance of the car, and lengthens the life.
Like so, our body needs a break for healing and repairing. Fasting is essential to detox the body for a healthy and longlife.
Intermittent fasting
Intermittent fasting has become hugely popular these days as many health experts recommend it to stay fit. It is a new name, practiced by ancient Indians and recommended by Ayurveda for physical and spiritual purposes.
Intermittent fasting is an eating pattern, where consuming foods and drinks are restricted for a certain time.
Traditional fasting
Traditionally fasting is a spiritual act to purify body, mind, and soul to acquire divine grace. There are different kinds of fasting depending on individual and community beliefs.
Hindu festivals like Mahashivaratri, Krishna Janmashtami, Navaratri are celebrated to appease Lord Shiva, Lord Krishna, and Lord Durga respectively. Generally, people fast for a day or a period of days during festivals. The most observed fast among Hindus is Ekadashi that falls twice a month.
Fresh fruits and milk are advised to eat during fasting. Few people eat only snacks, and some other people end their fast having a single meal after sunset.
It is foremost to break the fast with light meals in small quantities. As the stomach is empty, start with the food which is easy to digest. Heavy meals are hard to digest, may feel bloating and discomfort after eating. As a result, the goodness of fasting go waste.
Fasting Benefits
Sharpens your Brain
your brain functions great when the stomach is empty. Fasting stimulates nerve growth which improves focus, learning, and memory.
Lose weight
During fasting, the body burns available stored fat in the cells to produce energy. Thus, aids in weight-loss.
Improves heart health
Fasting helps to flush out toxins from the body, reduces cholesterol thus improves heart health.
Delay aging
Increases the metabolic activity of the body during fasting, which further leads to anti-aging.
Cancer prevention
Research shows that fasting slows down the progress of cancerous cells and delays tumor growth.
Precautions to be followed before you fast
People suffering from ailments, old-aged and pregnant women are not advised to fast. Always better to take advice from your doctor before you fast.
Forceful fasting may damage your health. It is important to prepare your mind and body before you fast.