Science of fasting |
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Periodic fasting and CR prevent aging and rejuvenate the body |
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High-protein diet in middle age poses serious health risk |
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Treatment of Obesity through fasting |
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Management of Diabetes Through Intermittent Fasting |
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Longevity Gene: Another scientific step towards longer lives |
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Cholesterol Lowering Drug Statin Can Extend Lives of Cancer Patients |
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Fasting cycles retard growth of tumors |
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Intermittent Fasting for Prevention Obesity and Diabetes by |
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New compound in red wine (piceatannol) staves off obesity |
Intermittent fasting and dieting and reproductive health.The data from the Dutch famine study suggested that in uteroexposure to famine was not associated with subsequent subfer-tility, including age at first pregnancy, completed family size, andinter-pregnancy interval [38]. Another study showed that womenwho were exposed to Dutch famine in utero had more children,more twins, and were less likely to remain childless. The famine hada direct influence on menstruation patterns. Severe famine expo-sure was associated with increased risk of irregular menses. CR inchildhood was associated with a higher risk of prolonged time formenses to become regular after menarche [39]. CR has also been shown to reduce age at menopause. Women who were severely exposed to the famine during World War IIexperienced natural menopause on average 0.36 years earlier.This finding may have significant health implications since ear-lier age at menopause has been associated with increased risk of morbidity due to osteoporosis [40], cardiovascular disease [41],and cognitive decline [42]. It is particularly and perhaps alarm-ingly problematic that higher burden of osteoporosis has been documented in some of the published studies. Bone is particularlysensitive to prolonged oligoovulation and resultant hypoestro-genism. The impact of such diet as IF on bone function may escapeeasy and reliable detection since the after effect of acute energyavailability may not be observed for decades. This is especially relevant for adolescents as adequate build-up of bone mass in womentakes place during the early reproductive years.The energy availability hypothesis has been proposed recently.It postulates that reproductive function in women is regulated notby the actual amount of body mass and body fat, but rather byavailable energy [43]. Experiments that imposed a high volume of aerobic exercise in an abrupt fashion caused a large prevalence ofanovulation in the first and second month after starting the exercise[44]. The period after bariatric surgery represents another example of potential low energy availability due to CR. A recent studyof 29 women undergoing bariatric surgery found that more than 90% of studied cycles were ovulatory [45]. In contrast, an earlierstudy reported that women in the rapid phase of weight loss afterbariatric surgery exhibit transient anovulation [46], presumablydue to low energy availability. References: [38] Lumey LH. Reproductive outcomes in women prenatally exposed to undernu-trition: a review of findings from the Dutch famine birth cohort. Proc Nutr Soc1998;57(1):129–35. [39] Elias SG, et al. Menstruation during and after caloric restriction: the 1944–1945Dutch famine. Fertil Steril 2007;88(4 Suppl):1101–7. [40] Sowers MR, La Pietra MT. Menopause: its epidemiology and potential associa-tion with chronic diseases. Epidemiol Rev 1995;17(2):287–302. [41] van der Schouw YT, et al. Age at menopause as a risk factor for cardiovascularmortality. Lancet 1996;347(9003):714–8. [42] Wise PM, et al. Minireview: neuroprotective effects of estrogen-new insightsinto mechanisms of action. Endocrinology 2001;142(3):969–73. [43] Loucks AB. Energy availability: not body fatness, regulates reproductive func-tion in women. Exerc Sport Sci Rev 2003;31(3):144–8. [44] Bullen BA, et al. Induction of menstrual disorders by strenuous exercise inuntrained women. N Engl J Med 1985;312(21):1349–53. [45] Legro RS, et al. Effects of gastric bypass surgery on female reproductive function.J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2012;97(12):4540–8. [46] Di Carlo C, et al. Hypogonadotropic hypogonadism in obese women after bil-iopancreatic diversion. Fertil Steril 1999;72(5):905–9. A case of obesity, diabetes and hypertension treated with very low calorie diet (VLCD) followed by successful pregnancy with intrauterine insemination (IUI). Rejuvenating effects of 10-week underfeeding period on estrous cycles in young and old rats. |
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