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Does fasting actually have health benefits?
June 19, 2015 at 4:18 pm
This is something many religionists love to yell about yet they only ever utter statements and don't provide any evidence (as is usual for religious claims). I'm sure there have been studies on fasting, but I can't imagine going for an entire day without drinking or eating is healthy. I'm sure a lot of people could cut down on the food intake, but it seems counter productive to dehydrate yourself. I've heard that drinking water often makes you feel less hungry.
If I remember rightly, if you starve yourself you will then be reaching for unhealthy foods when you finally decide to start eating again. That's why you have to be so careful when going on a diets because many diets are actually bad for you. If there have been any studies on fasting, I wonder if the Saudis or some other nefarious entity had a hand in their creation.
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RE: Does fasting actually have health benefits?
June 19, 2015 at 4:23 pm
(This post was last modified: June 19, 2015 at 4:25 pm by The Grand Nudger.)
Fasting isn't cutting down or cutting back, it isn't dieting. Fasting is denying yourself nutrition "because". Don't even invite the bait and switch...or you're sure to get it.
May as well ask "Could it be good for my car to stop putting oil in?" or "Hey, could I extend my warranty by not gassing up?"
I am the Infantry. I am my country’s strength in war, her deterrent in peace. I am the heart of the fight… wherever, whenever. I carry America’s faith and honor against her enemies. I am the Queen of Battle. I am what my country expects me to be, the best trained Soldier in the world. In the race for victory, I am swift, determined, and courageous, armed with a fierce will to win. Never will I fail my country’s trust. Always I fight on…through the foe, to the objective, to triumph overall. If necessary, I will fight to my death. By my steadfast courage, I have won more than 200 years of freedom. I yield not to weakness, to hunger, to cowardice, to fatigue, to superior odds, For I am mentally tough, physically strong, and morally straight. I forsake not, my country, my mission, my comrades, my sacred duty. I am relentless. I am always there, now and forever. I AM THE INFANTRY! FOLLOW ME!
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RE: Does fasting actually have health benefits?
June 19, 2015 at 4:27 pm
(June 19, 2015 at 4:23 pm)Rhythm Wrote: Fasting isn't cutting down or cutting back, it isn't dieting. Fasting is denying yourself nutrition "because". Don't even invite the bait and switch...or you're sure to get it.
May as well ask "Could it be good for my car to stop putting oil in?" or "Hey, could I extend my warranty by not gassing up?"
Good one. I'll have to try that. But they'll probably say it's a non-sequitur, or something equally as stupid, and come up with some stupid excuse, as religionists always do.
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RE: Does fasting actually have health benefits?
June 19, 2015 at 4:39 pm
(This post was last modified: June 19, 2015 at 4:44 pm by The Grand Nudger.)
It's not your fault they've lost their shit. Might have something to do with all that fasting......
Derision, Prop, derision and a refusal to grant them the single thing they desire most, undeserved respect for their position.....that's how you play it, man, I'm tellin ya. Don't spend a minute of feeling bad or guilty about it....you're going to get nothing good from them in the first place. A person can expect to get a yield out of a conversation directly commensurate with whatever effort they've put in, and they're just flinging shit at you like chimps.......so.
I'm sure someone will be along to tell you why this is a bad idea.....shortly, and you should probably listen to them, theirs will be the better advice...but I'm stickin ta ma gunz on this one.
I am the Infantry. I am my country’s strength in war, her deterrent in peace. I am the heart of the fight… wherever, whenever. I carry America’s faith and honor against her enemies. I am the Queen of Battle. I am what my country expects me to be, the best trained Soldier in the world. In the race for victory, I am swift, determined, and courageous, armed with a fierce will to win. Never will I fail my country’s trust. Always I fight on…through the foe, to the objective, to triumph overall. If necessary, I will fight to my death. By my steadfast courage, I have won more than 200 years of freedom. I yield not to weakness, to hunger, to cowardice, to fatigue, to superior odds, For I am mentally tough, physically strong, and morally straight. I forsake not, my country, my mission, my comrades, my sacred duty. I am relentless. I am always there, now and forever. I AM THE INFANTRY! FOLLOW ME!
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RE: Does fasting actually have health benefits?
June 19, 2015 at 4:41 pm
(This post was last modified: June 19, 2015 at 4:49 pm by Salacious B. Crumb.)
I don't think fasting is a great idea, although I'm no dietician. I'd say eating 4-5 smaller, healthier meals a day would be more beneficial if weight loss is a goal you had in mind. From what I've read, fasting screws up your metabolism, and makes you worse off than you were before.
Religionists love to say it, because it's part of their ancient religions. A catholic, I know, believes that not eating meat on every Wednesday and Friday is supposed to bring peace to the world. It's written somewhere in all the extra-biblical, virgin mary, man-made catholic trash. It may be in a Sister Mary of Agreda book supported by the church.
Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.' -Isaac Asimov-
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RE: Does fasting actually have health benefits?
June 19, 2015 at 4:45 pm
Generally speaking, fasting is not healthful and is just stupid.
(The "generally speaking" part is necessary because it is often a good idea to fast before surgery, as directed by your doctors who are planning on performing it.)
Also, drinking water can make you feel less hungry, depending on the particular circumstances. Within reason, you can drink as much water as you like.
Even if you are fat, doctors do not generally recommend fasting. They generally recommend that you cut down on how much you eat, and be careful about what you eat, and want you to also get some exercise. Fasting is not a healthy way to lose weight.
In religion, when they advocate fasting, it is just a bit of silliness, just like so many other things in religion. It is a bad idea, and you ought not do it. Unless, of course, you are surrounded by idiots who will do nasty things to you if you don't comply.
"A wise man ... proportions his belief to the evidence."
— David Hume, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, Section X, Part I.
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RE: Does fasting actually have health benefits?
June 19, 2015 at 4:49 pm
Which ties in pretty well with fasting before surgery. As a general rule, if you think that someone might be slicing you open in the next 24-48 hours for -any- reason, religious ones included.....go ahead and fast.
I am the Infantry. I am my country’s strength in war, her deterrent in peace. I am the heart of the fight… wherever, whenever. I carry America’s faith and honor against her enemies. I am the Queen of Battle. I am what my country expects me to be, the best trained Soldier in the world. In the race for victory, I am swift, determined, and courageous, armed with a fierce will to win. Never will I fail my country’s trust. Always I fight on…through the foe, to the objective, to triumph overall. If necessary, I will fight to my death. By my steadfast courage, I have won more than 200 years of freedom. I yield not to weakness, to hunger, to cowardice, to fatigue, to superior odds, For I am mentally tough, physically strong, and morally straight. I forsake not, my country, my mission, my comrades, my sacred duty. I am relentless. I am always there, now and forever. I AM THE INFANTRY! FOLLOW ME!
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RE: Does fasting actually have health benefits?
June 19, 2015 at 5:19 pm
During Ramadan the devils are supposed to be chained and the gates to hell closed. e.g. http://www.quranx.com/Hadith/Bukhari/Book-30/Hadith-9/
What it means is that if a believer has doubts about their religion during Ramamdan it cannot be due to Iblis or any demons. I imagine Ramadan is the period when many people start to have doubts about their religion, especially given how Allah could not think up a fairer system for fasting (one that is not determined by sunrise and sunset). I think this is a great time of the year to seek out believers and put doubts in their minds. Then again, if you dare question the religion using facts uncomfortable for the believers, you'll be booted off of their forums pretty quickly.
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RE: Does fasting actually have health benefits?
June 19, 2015 at 11:20 pm
LOL, I didn't eat for over 10 days when I had West Nile Fever last year. I forced down an Ensure once in a while, but I lost well over 10 pounds, despite being totally sedentary while I was sick.
West Nile Fever isn't anything to mess with, it was the sickest I have ever been as a grown up. I had problems for weeks afterwards, and even now feel I have some slight issues with numbers. One good thing, I barely feel the cold anymore.
I haven't considered if the disease process or lack of nutrition for that long caused most of the problems. I could see WNF being fatal for people not a whole lot older than myself, especially if they already had severe health problems. And existing issues, like the level of care they normally expend on themselves, and yse, that would include prior good nutrition and not having a history of risky fad dieting.
The granting of a pardon is an imputation of guilt, and the acceptance a confession of it.
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RE: Does fasting actually have health benefits?
June 19, 2015 at 11:59 pm
The only good reason for fasting, lent, or other religious abstinence, is that willpower is a muscle that grows if exercised. But surely one can find something to exercise it on that is useful rather than harmful.
If there is a god, I want to believe that there is a god. If there is not a god, I want to believe that there is no god.
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