Intermittent Fasting, OMAD, Ketosis, Autophagy for Lupus: Medical Doctor Explains Pro/Cons

fasting for Lupus does it help and is it sustainable that’s the question we’ll dive into today and we’ll be discussing different fasting methods such as water fast intermittent fasting one meal a day and the pros and cons of ketosis hi I’m Dr chanasi a surgeon who specializes in reversing complex inflammation naturally using the Mind gut immunity method we’ve refined our methodology over the past 12 years and have helped thousands of patients recover we look at conditions such as lupus and help find the root cause and as you know by now from hundreds of research papers on the topic the gut microbiome plays a significant role in modulating the immune response seen in Lupus if you want to find out how we fix these issues schedule a discovery call with me and I’ll provide you with some helpful tips to get started here are a few studies that describe fasting in the setting of Lupus here’s a 2020 study that exhibits how intermittent fasting aggravates lupus symptoms here’s a 2024 study that analyzes the relation between intermittent fasting cognitive dysfunction and systemic disease activity in lupus I’ll break down these studies related to fasting in lupus and I’ll offer some personal insights into how fasting plays out in the long term for people dealing with lupus to begin it’s essential to understand that 80% of your immune system resides in your gut this area is called the mucosa Associated lymphatic tissue or Mt for short Mt contains trillions of immune cells that react to what’s in your intestine and what’s in there primarily food and microbes including bacteria funguses and viruses these microbes digest food and create secondary and tertiary metabolites which can then trigger an immune response and this is why it’s crucial to not only eat the right kinds of foods but also maintain a healthy and balanced microbiome to address autoimmune conditions like lupus take a look at my other video entitled ideal diet for Lupus which I’ve Linked In the description below in that video I describe the four criteria I use to evaluate whether a diet is effective or not at managing lupus I’m a strong Advocate as you know of the phytonutrient diet which we use frequently in our Clinic with great success when combined with Precision microbiome recalibration many of our patients experience rapid Improvement in their symptoms often within weeks I encourage you to check out that video to better understand why phytonutrients are such an essential part of managing lupus now the four criteria I use to evaluate whether any dietary approach works for Lupus is phytonutrient density and diversity macro requirements microbiome specificity and food sensitivity if you want to know why these factors matter check out the ideal diet for Lupus video Linked In the description below I’ll also give you a quick recap here so you don’t have to switch between video videos phytonutrient density and diversity phytonutrients are powerful micronutrients that help reduce inflammation in the body and help heal lupus numerous Studies have highlighted the role of phytonutrients in managing lupus here’s a 2019 study on the effect of curcumin a natural polyphenol compound and how it attenuates lupus symptoms this 2015 study explores the connection between the diet gut microbiome and lupus focusing on how specific dietary components like fibers and polyphenols influence gut bacteria in Lupus patients and this one from 2022 evaluates the role probiotics in modulating the gut microbiome and their potential therapeutic benefits in managing lupus phytonutrients are molecular compounds found primarily in plants and fungi and they have a significant positive impact on human health these include terms like superfoods or micronutrients and antioxidants research consistently shows that supplementing your diet with phytonutrients can help alleviate lupus symptoms phytonutrients fall into several key categories tpes phenols chlorophyll thiocyanates phyto enzymes phyto oils prebiotics and alkaloids while there are smaller groups like betal Lanes from beets and herisson from mushrooms focusing on these eight categories will cover most of your phytonutrient needs deficiencies in these essential micronutrients can disrupt the critical mind gut immune connection making it harder to manage inflammatory conditions like lupus the goal should be to always maximize and optimize your intake of phytonutrients from everyday Foods by maximize and optimize I mean increasing both the variety and the density of phytonutrients in your diet for Lupus which is crucial for maintaining overall health a diet low in phytonutrients can make it more difficult to overcome inflammation seen in lupus when fasting we typically get very little or none of these vital nutrients you may feel temporarily better when your digestive system is empty with less food to digest however because of the absence of phytonutrients immune regulation doesn’t actually happen and symptoms from lupus can return once fasting ends one suggestion I have is to incorporate herbal teas and if you’re considering a water fast or several days of intermittent fasting with a six or 8 Hour eating window herbal teas provide phytonutrients like polyphenols and Turpin which can help reduce inflammation without adding calories next macro requirements macro is short for macro nutrients which are carbs fats and proteins all of which the body requires to maintain proper function there’s a tool on my website called the macro calculator which will help you figure out your body’s maintenance requirements based on factors like height weight age gender and activity level it’s important to note that these macronutrient estimates are based on ideal physiologic function however when fasting you won’t be getting these nutrients in the long term and at best you may be getting them in reduced amounts let’s take a look at the different types of fasting water fasts which are 24 48 or 72 hours or even up to 5 to 14 days you can have total caloric restriction which is consuming fewer than 800 to 1,000 calories per day intermittent fasting which is eating within a 6h hour 8 hour 10h hour or 12-h hour window and you can have one meal a day or omad consuming all of your calories in just one meal whichever fasting method you choose the underlying benefit comes from ketosis in ketosis your body stops using carbohydrates for energy and starts relying on stored fat and muscle instead and supporters of fasting often highlight a process called autophagy where the body cleans up old or damaged cells which is an anti-inflammatory process but here’s the problem while fasting May temporarily relieve lupus symptoms those symptoms almost always return so when that happens the second time the third time or even long term when you rely on fasting to manage lupus what happens when the symptoms return eating can become even more challenging you may feel bloated or fatigued or low and energy after meals and these symptoms can make it difficult to eat properly creating a vicious cycle that’s really hard to break especially if you’re underweight a body mass index of 18 or lower can be particularly concerning for people with lupus you can easily calculate your BMI using the BMI calculator on our Clinic’s website if your BMI is below 18 that’s a serious issue and I’ve treated people with bmis as low as 13 which is extremely severe when someone with lupus has a low BMI it means that their body is in a catabolic State breaking down muscle instead of building it up which can slow healing many of these patients struggle to tolerate food and need careful coaching to reintroduce it into their diet the reason I emphasize this is that the solution to a dysfunctional gut microbiome seen in lupus should never involve avoiding food or stopping eating alt together even if fasting makes you feel better in the short term trust me I used to fast myself so I understand the appeal but instead of avoiding food focusing on reducing inflammation first then returning to normal eating habits is a better strategy and when I made this change and when my patients made this change the results were much more sustainable unfortunately many patients with lupus give up on trying to find the right diet and may end up avoiding food entirely here’s a recent study that shows how intermittent fasting for prolong periods of time can increase the risk of cardiac death furthermore if you have caloric restriction for long periods of time and we’re talking over several days weeks months of intermittent fasting various issues can arise you can have weight loss and muscle wasting you can have thyroid dysfunction you have cortisol and sympathetic endocrine dysfunction sleep disturbances protein calorie malnutrition which impedes wound healing and inflammation control nausea and reflux the feeling of fullness and a decreased appetite and of course severe intermittent fatigue some of these symptoms sound a lot like lopus also the reason I emphasize this is that the solution to a dysfunctional gut microbiome should never be to stop eating or avoiding food altogether instead the focus should be on reducing inflammation first then returning to a normal balanced diet unfortunately many people struggling with lupus have given up on finding what the ideal diet is and may resort to avoiding food which is only making the problem worse now if you’re trying to determine the ideal macronutrient balance for managing lupus the key is to focus on fats carbs and proteins to reduce inflammation I recommend around 50% of your daily calories come from fats with carbohydrates and proteins each making up about 25% the reason carbs make up a smaller portion of the diet especially at first is because harmful gut bacteria and candida in particular they thrive on sugar they love carbs and if your microbiome is already out of balance feeding at Sugar will only make the problem worse so you have bad bacteria and fungus which are introduced to sugars carbs and fiber in your intestine which lead to inflammation and this inflammation travels to the rest of your body creating symptoms seen in lupus simple sugars like glucose and fructose can stimulate the growth of both both harmful bacteria and fungi similarly simple starches such as those found in processed flour can lead to bacterial and fungal overgrowth this observation comes from an extensive experience working with thousands of patients rather than specific scientific studies if your goal was to lose weight you might need to reduce both carbohydrates and fats further while increasing your protein intake and lowering overall calories on the other hand if you’re trying to gain weight you’ll want to increase your total caloric intake and adjust your carbon fat ratios for a more balanced approach tracking your macronutrients can significantly help you to achieve your desired health goals it takes effort but it’s well worth it this approach will not only improve your diet balance but also contribute to better long-term health so just a recap the criteria I use to judge whether a diet will work for reversing lupus inflammation in patients long term are the following phytonutrient focused meeting nutritional requirements microbiome specificity and avoiding food sensitiv as I mentioned earlier feel free to check out some of my other videos or refer to the description below for additional resources you’ll find links to the body mass calculator a guide to different types of phytonutrients needed to manage lupus a macronutrient calculator to help you determine your carbs fats and proteins and a fiber and starch guide to help you avoid carbohydrates that can worsen gut microbiome dysfunction as I’ve mentioned earlier I help my clients with lupus formulate their diets based on these principles and they tend to do quite well the severity of their symptoms often decreases significantly within a short period of time and many of them are able to reduce or completely stop their medications and live healthier more fulfilling lives I’m a strong advocate of the phytonutrient diet and I use it routinely in my clients the phyto diet for Lupus is effective at recalibrating the gut microbiome and addressing issues related to phytonutrient deficiency this diet also helps avoid food sensitivities while meeting long-term nutritional needs for those who are undereating this typically means increasing your food intake specifically eating more of the foods that will not only help you gain healthy weight but also heal inflammation the right way and by following this approach you can avoid many of the negative consequences of long-term undereating reversing the effects of fasting can be hard work but with the right plan it’s entirely possible okay one last thing I would love to hear your thoughts down below comment on the types of food that exacerbate your inflammation and your lupus symptoms and what can be done to avoid them and finally if you like this video please like And subscribe and be sure to share this video with someone that you think it can help this is Dr Chan oser with the Mind gut immunity clinic and I’ll see you next time