Generally, if you are in excellent health, a very brief, one-day fast wherein you don't consume any solid food---only liquids---may be appropriate, according to Dr. Elson Haas, author of "The New Detox." If you are new to fasting, it is a good idea to get medical clearance from your physician first. Fasting places the body in a "famine" state and metabolism slows down. Consider juice fasting instead, which provides calories.
Slows Down Metabolism
Metabolism slows down during a fast of any kind as the body shifts gears to conserve energy in what it perceives to be a famine. Normally, when you eat food daily, your body digests it and moves it through the stages of digestion, assimilation of nutrients and finally, elimination, according to Haas.
According to the National Institutes of Health, a very low calorie diet can interfere with healthy elimination. An extended fast is not recommended unless it is closely supervised by a physician, often in a hospital setting.
Ketosis
Ketosis is the process by which the body, operating on very little to no calories, begins to metabolize its own muscle tissue. In a sense, this is canabalizing the body. This causes muscle wasting. An extreme example is people with severe cases of anorexia nervosa. When they have stopped eating or eat very little, their bodies become skeletal as much of the muscle has been consumed by the body.
According to the National Institutes of Health, very-low calorie diets are appropriate only when medically supervised because of the health risks such as ketosis.
Constipation
Constipation can result from fasting when you don't eat any solid foods. Soluble and insoluble fiber is found in all types of whole fruits, vegetables and whole grains such as brown rice, quinoa, millet or oats. Not providing the body with fiber creates quite a challenge for it to move stool out of the colon. This is the reason why people on a liquid fast will consume juices such as carrot, aloe vera, beet and prune as they help the colon cleanse. Or, people may drink herbal laxative teas such as senna or cascara sagrada.
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