Fasting, Protein Sparing and House Cleaning

There are seven of us here now, and there will be fourteen by the end of the week. Two who have already arrived are from Florida, one a Math Professor from the State University in Tampa. We are settling into the routine of reading, watching TV and resting. We have to drink between one and three quarts of water a day - no more or no less least we upset the electrolytic chemical balances in the body.

In addition I'm working on the "Intuition in Management" Web Site. I'm still figuring out how to use the various software and services from a remote location. But that is coming along well. Right now I'm waiting from an email reply from FIU regarding transferring files using the ftp mode of Telnet. Once I've figured out the details, I should be able to go anywhere in the country using a local telephone number and work just as if I were sitting at my desktop at home.

Still no signs of hunger except as I mentioned before about the time of day pattern. If I do think about food, it's around one of the meal or snack times that I'm accustomed too. In his book, Fuhrman says we don't experience true hunger until the body shifts into starvation mode. When that happens of course the fast is ended and a four day refeeding program is started that is tailored to each individual.

During the fasting period, the body is drawing on fat and muscle for reserve energy. During the second day of a fast the body shifts into protein sparing which protects the muscle tissue as much as possible. During this period the "house cleaning" takes place scourging the body for toxins and eliminating them. The fast shifts to starvation mode when the body starts to consume vital organs for its energy reserves. The doctor is able to tell when this occurs by symptomatic observation as well as lab tests.

The more I read about it, the more I realize the human body is an amazingly robust self maintenance system if only we get out of the way. The typical American diet is probably the single most powerful deterrent to the body doing its own natural thing to stay healthy. I'm coming to believe the health care crisis is one of a fast food diet of fat, sugar and salt along with caffeine and alcohol rather than one of medicine and surgery.