Fasting and the Regeneration of the Immune System

Fasting is not only popular for weight loss, but it also has a significant impact on the regeneration of the immune system. Discover how fasting can naturally improve your health.

Every day we see how science advances in discovering the wonderful functioning of the human body and the resources it has to self-manage in a natural way without external interventions of chemical substances. These studies are a demonstration of how controlled fasting promotes the body’s self-management in the creation of stem cells. Short-term fasting seems to have made a resurgence in popularity in recent years, with intermittent fasting gaining fame for more than just weight loss benefits. So, what happens when we get used to going beyond intermittent fasting to prolonged fasting a couple of times a week? (1) There is research revealing that fasting twice a week could significantly reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. But new research has revealed another benefit of fasting or diets that mimic it. It seems that it can trigger the regeneration of stem cells, helping to initiate a repair of the damaged immune system. (2) The research revealed that “fasting for three days can regenerate the entire immune system, even in the elderly.” It can be applied to people whose immune systems have been decimated by chemotherapy, undermined by diseases like multiple sclerosis, or simply diminished with age. The research results from two studies led by Professor Valter Longo of the USC Longevity Institute at the USC Davis School of Gerontology. How does the fasting-immune connection system work?

The green light is given to stem cells to go ahead and start proliferating and rebuilding the entire system,” said Professor Longo. “And the good news is that during fasting, the body got rid of parts of the system that might be damaged or old, the inefficient parts. Now, if you start with a system very damaged by chemotherapy or aging, fasting cycles can literally generate a new immune system.”

(3) The body is forced to use glucose and fat reserves during prolonged fasting, but it also breaks down a significant portion of white blood cells. This depletion “triggers a regeneration of stem cells that will create new immune system cells [2].” Essentially shifting stem cells “from a dormant state to a state of self-renewal.” Previous research had shown that short-term fasting starves cancer cells rapidly and facilitates chemotherapy drugs to better target cancer. (4) Another more recent study showed that a low-calorie fasting diet can delay multiple sclerosis by killing bad cells and generating new healthy ones.

So this could potentially be great news for chemotherapy patients, multiple sclerosis patients, and the elderly. However, fasting for long periods, or following a diet that includes fasting, should always be approached with caution and under the guidance of an appropriate health professional. Longo’s studies et al used specific fasting diet protocols to achieve their results.

Still, some very interesting results have appeared in their quest to understand how the body reacts to fasting or rapid fasting diet protocols.

• (5) A study examined mice with autoimmune diseases subjected to a three-day fast every seven days. It showed increased levels of corticosterone (a steroid hormone), a reduction in cytokines that cause inflammation, and improvements in white blood ‘t cells responsible for immunity.
• (5) They also found that the fasting diet protocol promoted the regeneration of myelin that had been damaged by autoimmunity.
• (6) The fasting-mimicking diet also resulted in improved metabolism and cognitive function, decreased bone loss and cancer incidence, and prolonged longevity.
• (6) They found that in humans who used the fasting-mimicking diet with the prescribed regularity over time, it reduced multiple aging risk factors.
• (7) Prolonged fasting cycles reduce damage in bone marrow stem cells and progenitor cells and protect against chemotoxicity.
• (7) Prolonged fasting cycles regulate stem cell populations independently of chemotherapy and helped reverse immunosenescence, and also have a significant impact on hematopoietic regeneration.

So there you have it! There are certainly more reasons for fasting than meets the eye. Full studies can be found using the following references: Fasting Initiates Regeneration Study References (1) Walia, A (2015), “Neuroscientist Shows What Fasting Does to Your Brain,” Collective Evolution, http://www.collective-evolution.com/2015/12/11/neuroscientist-shows-what-fasting-does-to-your-brain-why-big-pharma-wont-study-it/ retrieved March 21, 2016 (2) Knapton, S (2014) “Fasting for three days can regenerate the entire immune system, even in the elderly.”