What is the 5:2 diet?
Calorie restriction or mini-fasting is followed on two (non-consecutive) days. So, for two days in a week, you eat low-calorie foods (around 600 cal) but highly nutritional foods. The other 5 days, you return to your regular eating routine. This type of fasting is called as intermittent fasting. This is different from a full fast (where one consumes just water or nothing at all).
How did 5:2 diet become popular?
The 5:2 diet was popularized with British physician and television broadcaster Michael Mosley. In August 2012, the BBC Horizon’s documentary featured reporter Michael Mosley trying the diet, talking to experts about the benefits, which resulted in a 5-week loss in weight of approx 15-20lbs. Moreover, it also recorded a number of blood tests showing dramatic improvements in his cholesterol and glucose levels, among other things.
Benefits of 5:2 diet:
1. Your cognitive function may be improved which can help to prevent conditions like Alzheimer’s and dementia.
2. Initial studies suggest intermittent fasting may have the ability to increase lifespan.
3. One of the long-term ideas behind this type of diet is that it promotes your body’s IGF-1 hormone (normally a growth hormone that causes aging) to go from growth to repair, meaning it works at making your body heal, rather than just grow.
Studies on 5:2 Diet
A study by researchers at the University of Manchester found that when overweight women followed a 5:2 approach, they lost more weight and body fat and improved their insulin resistance compared with women who followed a more traditional diet of limiting calories seven days per week.
One explanation for the success of the 5-2 dieters could be that a day of mini-fasting can lead to diminished appetite.
When we go without food, the body uses up its stored glucose (the basic fuel for the body) and starts burning fat. During fasting, fat can convert to compounds called ketones. Ketones are supposed to have beneficial effects in making neurons more resistant to injury and disease.
Currently, scientists are also studying on how intermittent fasting may help boost immunity, perhaps by making cells more adaptive to stress like injury and disease.
There may be an evolutionary reason for intermittent fasting being beneficial because humans (and other animals) have fasted intermittently for centuries. A recent paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences notes, “The most common eating pattern in modern societies, three meals plus snacks every day, is abnormal from an evolutionary perspective.”
Another study conducted by the researchers at the University of Bath found that intermittent fasting could increase susceptibility to infection in the long run.
Tips for following a 5:2 diet
-Choose your foods carefully: 600 calories is the limit for two days, but that doesn’t mean you have a piece of chocolate cake and starve the rest of the day. Avoid refined carbs and sugar. Drink herbal teas, eat high protein food and fewer carbs. Space out your meals to avoid late-night cravings.
-Fast depending on your health and age: You can try intermittent fasting once in a month or once in three months. This, of course, largely depends on your current state of health and age. Studies have shown that a long-term lifestyle change (and the benefits associated with it) is more likely for people who can stick with the diet for at least a month.
-Expect side-effects: Don’t be surprised if there are some side effects like trouble sleeping, gastrointestinal issues, bad breath, dehydration or anxiety.
-Follow a plan: Follow a plan: Plan your meals to ensure you stay below the daily calorie count. For example, a good starting plan will set your calorie limits to 150 at breakfast, 100 at lunch, 200 at dinner and 50-100 for snacks throughout the day.
-Don’t follow a full fast for two days: You should not attempt doing a full fast (i.e. starve the entire day). This will deprive your body of nutrients and will build more durable fat, which is made for long-term safety, that is harder to lose. But, if you do wish to do a full fast, consult a doctor or clinic and do so with their assistance and monitoring.
-Less energy: Although you are still eating, a sudden change in your eating habits can shock your system, especially if you have never fasted before. So take it easy for those two days and don’t stress.
-Who should not do this diet: This diet is not suitable for pregnant women, people with Type 1 diabetics, children or people recovering from surgery.
Cautionary note: This diet should not be followed by people who are recovering from an eating disorder or young children. Fasting can deprive children of essential nutrients and stunt their growth.
Edited by Rachelle Chandraan
