The body’s autophagic process is quite an amazing one. Our cells work to rid themselves of toxins and other harmful build-up, recycling them for cell renewal. Fasting can help expedite this process, and with the help of supplements, you can promote autophagy to blast fat, reach a healthy weight, and improve skin.
Autophagy and Intermittent Fasting
Autophagy and intermittent fasting can be used to rid the body of cellular debris and lose weight. When translated from the Greek language, autophagy means “self-eating”. While that sounds negative, it is a healthy process that aids in longevity and disease reduction. It is part of a cellular process that maintains cell homeostasis by balancing the tasks of making and breaking cellular components.
One possible way to induce autophagy within your body is with Intermittent fasting. Intermittent fasting is when you refrain from consuming calories over several hours or even days. When you engage in fasting and cells are starved, autophagy kicks in to help digest damaged parts of the cell and provide the necessary energy to survive. This aids in clearing out potentially harmful cells, preventing illness and disease.
How Long Does it Take for Autophagy to Kick in?
The amount of time it takes for autophagy to begin depends on a person’s metabolism. Most of the studies on autophagy and intermittent fasting have been conducted on animals, but it is believed that autophagy takes anywhere from two to four days in humans. Research on animals showed evidence that autophagy begins after 24 hours of fasting and peaks at 48 hours.
The process starts when glucose and insulin levels experience a significant drop. Some studies detected autophagy in human immune cells after 24 hours. There are no conclusive human studies that indicate an optimal period of fasting to reach autophagy. But if you combine fasting with other autophagy triggers like diet and exercise, you can likely reap its benefits more quickly.
Does Autophagy Promote Weight Loss?
Many have studied the possible link between autophagy and weight loss. Generally speaking, autophagy does not cause weight loss, as it is an ongoing cellular process that keeps our cells alive. However, the autophagic process makes the metabolic process more efficient by removing and repairing cells that no longer function as needed. Autophagy may also inhibit the occurrence of diseases that can cause weight loss.
You will lose weight naturally if you are fasting and exercising to induce autophagy. When you burn more calories than you consume, it helps to lose weight. Also, reducing your intake of carbohydrates will help in the weight loss process. But remember that carbs are part of a healthy, well-balanced diet and should not be completely eliminated from your diet for an extended period of time.
Does Autophagy Help Burn Fat?
There are some studies to indicate that we can burn fat with autophagy. When you fast, your cells may begin to eat fat cells in order to gain the energy needed to function normally. However, you can achieve this level of autophagy without starving yourself for hours or days at a time.
Protein cycling is another way to induce autophagy to promote fat-burning effects. Rather than stop eating completely, you can reduce the amount of protein you eat one to two days per week. Lowering your protein intake to fifteen to twenty grams on your low-protein days can help trigger autophagy for weight loss.
Can Autophagy Tighten Skin?
Extreme weight loss can often result in loose, sagging skin. Furthermore, as we age, our body produces less collagen, the protein needed to keep skin looking tight, bright, and bouncy. Fibroblasts are the cells that create collagen, but when they fail to do so, the result is loose sagging skin. Autophagy boosts collagen production from the inside out.
When you want to look younger and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, you can tighten skin with autophagy. Skin aging is directly affected by autophagy as it reduces the loose skin on the body and helps tighten it. Autophagy supports the process by which skin elasticity is achieved to make you look younger.
What Is the Best Way to Reach Autophagy?
The most common way to reach autophagy is through intermittent fasting. By restricting your calorie consumption to a period of only a few hours a day, the autophagic process will kick in. A diet high in fat and low in carbohydrates will also promote autophagy.
The popular keto diet promotes autophagy. You get about 75 percent of your daily calories from fat and 5 to 10 percent of your calories from carbohydrates. When you adjust your calorie sources, your body shifts its metabolic pathways. Your body will begin to use fat for fuel and energy instead of the glucose that it usually gets from carbohydrates.
Are Autophagy and Ketosis the Same Thing?
Autophagy and ketosis are not the same things, but they do offer some of the same benefits. Ketosis is the process that occurs when your body lacks the amount of carbohydrates it needs to burn for energy. When there are not enough carbs present, the body burns fat and produces ketones, which it can use for fuel. You can combine intermittent fasting to promote autophagy with a keto diet for optimal weight loss results.
Do You Lose Weight in Ketosis?
When you follow a ketogenic diet, your body burns fat for fuel to create energy instead of carbs or sugars. Your liver makes this switch of burning fat when you refrain from eating carbohydrates. The liver turns fats into fatty acids and ketones that are used by your cells for energy.
Your body burns dietary fat before it burns body fat while in ketosis. If you are trying to lose weight in ketosis, you must be sure to reduce your calorie intake. In order to lose weight, you have to burn more calories than you eat. While ketosis may not lead to fat burning all the time, it does help to boost your body’s metabolism. While you are not always burning fat on keto, you have the potential to burn more per day and reach your weight loss goals more quickly.
Supplements May Help You
When you want to lose weight and look younger, supplements can help. Spermidine helps you boost health, increase longevity, and reduce the risk of disease. When paired with exercise and a healthy diet, spermidine supplements work to revitalize your cells by promoting autophagy.
Fasting has many health benefits but can be uncomfortable or even dangerous if you have certain health conditions or are pregnant. Spermidine has the fascinating ability to mimic fasting and induce autophagy. Spermidine can have the same effects on autophagy as a calorie-restricted diet.
