Is There a Connection Between Intermittent Fasting and Eating Disorder?

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Written By: Vivian Benjamin

What is Intermittent Fasting?
Presently, intermittent fasting has become prevalent around the world due to its significance in preventing chronic diseases and weight loss. Several studies have concluded that intermittent fasting tends to prevent cardiometabolic diseases, improve cognition and a healthy diet to be practised to reduce weight.



So, what is this intermittent fasting? Intermittent fasting is defined as a restriction of calories or a period of not consuming any food for a certain set of times. Although intermittent fasting became famous recently, fasting has always been practised by humans since ancient times.



During ancient civilizations humans could not store food, so they could only rely on food that they hunted at that time. Therefore, they can only eat at specified times and need to go hungry sometimes. Besides that, fasting has also been practised by several religions such as the Catholics, Hindus and Muslims to pray for something or for religious festivals.




In this article, I’m going to share with you a little bit about intermittent fasting, talk about eating disorders and explore whether intermittent fasting is associated with eating disorders. 



Types of Intermittent Fasting

There are several types of intermittent fasting which include:
1. Alternate Day Fasting
Alternate day fasting is where no food or beverages are consumed on each alternative day.


2. 5:2 Diets
The 5:2 diet plan revolves around eating a balanced meal for 5 days in a week nevertheless; for the remaining 2 days only 500-600 calories are consumed.


3. 16:8 Plan
This diet entails that food and beverages are consumed for 8 hours and then fast for the remaining 16 hours. For instance, food can be consumed from 9 am to 5 pm then fasting after 5 pm for 16 hours.


4. 24 Hour Fast
During 24-hour fasting, consumption of food and beverages is stopped for 24 hours a day. This is practised once or twice a week. 




Health Benefits of Intermittent Fasting

Now that you know the types of intermittent fasting let’s talk about the health benefits of intermittent fasting to your mind and body.


1. Regulate sugar and cholesterol level
High glucose levels increase the risk of diabetes. Similarly, high cholesterol levels raise the chances of developing heart disease. Intermittent fasting can regulate glucose and cholesterol levels according to several studies.



2. Reduce Inflammation
Inflammation is the process where your body fights off and removes harmful stimuli, through your immune system so healing can occur. It can be either acute or chronic. Intermittent fasting has been evidenced to protect against inflammation.



3. Prevent cancer
Many people develop cancer due to poor nutrition choices and unhealthy lifestyles. The most common cancers are breast cancer, lung cancer, colon cancer, rectum cancer and prostate cancer. According to several studies intermittent fasting can aid in the prevention of cancer.



4. Improve gut health
Your body is host to trillions of microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites that live inside the body. These microorganisms live together peacefully without harming you. Not only do they not damage you, but they are also proven to benefit humans tremendously. Intermittent fasting has been proven to improve gut health according to several studies.



5. Protects your brain health
Intermittent fasting has been evidenced to improve memory and cognition according to research studies. Besides that, studies also show that it may protect against the development of Alzheimer's disease. 



6. Weight loss
Due to the fasting effect and calorie restriction weight loss can be achieved when you practice intermittent fasting. 
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Now, let’s dive into eating disorders. 

Eating disorders are defined as disturbances to a person’s eating behaviour. This type of disorder can happen to anyone around the world and severely impacts your mental and physical health. Most people tend to care about what they eat because they are concerned about their health, appearance and weight nonetheless; several people may be overly conscious regarding their eating behaviour thus; causing them to have eating disorders. 

Types of eating disorders.
1. Anorexia Nervosa
Anorexia nervosa is a condition where people eat small quantities of food, completely avoid food or restrict food. They constantly weigh themselves and even if they are underweight they may assume they are overweight.

There are 2 subtypes –
Restrictive: severely limit the amount and type of food

Binge-Purge: restrict the food consumed. In addition to that, eat a large amount of food in a short time followed by forced vomiting.




2. Bulimia Nervosa
Bulimia nervosa is a condition where they eat large amounts of food then accompanied by forced vomiting. These people may maintain a normal weight or be overweight.
 



3. Binge-Eating Disorder
The binge-eating disorder happens when people lose control of their eating and have repetitive episodes of eating large amounts of food. These people are normally overweight or obese.



4. Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID)
Avoidant restrictive food intake disorder is when people limit the amount or type of food eaten. People suffering from ARFID don’t have extreme fear of gaining weight or concerns about their body image. ARFID commonly develops during middle childhood. 




Is Intermittent Fasting Associated with Eating Disorders

Now that you know what is intermittent fasting and eating disorders, let’s dive further into how several studies have associated intermittent fasting with the advancement of eating disorders.



Several studies found that women, teenagers and young adults are highly susceptible to eating disorders when they practice intermittent fasting. This is because, when they choose to practice intermittent fasting, eventually they tend to develop food cravings and start to binge eat.



To illustrate, when you are stressed, happy or have any kind of emotional situation you tend to crave certain types of food therefore; it is easy to fall into disordered eating behaviour. Apart from that, several researches also indicate, that when consuming a low-carbohydrate diet in daily life as part of an intermittent fasting approach, it is highly associated with the surge of binge eating compared to those who practice a normal healthy diet.




Moreover, with the influence of social media many females and young adults tend to integrate intermittent fasting into their daily lives to reduce weight however; in due course, they develop food cravings, subsequently; progress into disordered eating behaviours such as anorexia nervosa or binge eating.




Social media can be positive or negative depending on how you choose to perceive it. Presently, there are many misinformation on social media. As a result, young adults are highly prone to try every type of diet to reduce weight and be concerned about their body image. Several studies portray evidence that this situation is linked to disordered eating behaviours. 












All in All
Intermittent fasting has long been incorporated into human life since ancient times. However, in modern times people tend to modify everything to suit their personal preferences and what the world thinks about things.



While intermittent fasting can be beneficial to your health and well-being it has to be practised moderately so as not to develop negative results. Remember, balance has to be applied in everything in life and that also includes intermittent fasting. Nevertheless, people who have an eating disorder or have a history of eating disorders should never integrate intermittent fasting into their lives.



Share in the comments section what you think about this topic. Alternatively, if you have any other insights please feel free to share or ask.













References
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