Top 10 Reasons Why Fasting Heals

 In Juice Fasting

It’s not uncommon that I hear chronic Lyme patients describe years of expensive and difficult treatment, having tried everything they could find both conventional and alternative to heal their chronic disease.

It begs the question, what’s missing from the current way we go about treating Lyme disease in the Integrative Medicine model? Why does it take so long for many people with persistent tick-borne infection to heal, and what can substantially enhance and speed up the recovery process?

While “detox” is a popular strategy in holistic medicine and wellness circles, it’s often approached superficially, and real results – while deeply needed – may be hard to come by.

Let me introduce you to the ancient, profound, and ultimately simple healing technique of fasting through these top 10 reasons why fasting heals Lyme (& most chronic disease) in a way that nothing else can.

#1. Many a “miracle cure” is attributed to fasting. From seizures, to blood pressure dysregulation to diabetes, depression, cancer, heart disease – and of course Lyme disease which mimics all these and more! It’s a natural mammalian instinct to heal disease through fasting; when you are sick, your biology is hard-wired to initiate healing when allowed to fast.

#2. Fasting reverses toxicity-induced symptoms, which Lyme disease is infamous for, including migraines, skin rashes, numbness, pain, and more. As toxins are safely and gradually released from the body, many symptoms considered “irreversible” may reduce or are relieved altogether.

leap-ul#3. Longevity and youth regeneration. Studies show that fasting, like exercise, creates changes at the cellular level that help extend your lifespan. This is in part because fasting increases human growth hormone (HGH) production, which is necessary for maintaining the look and feel, the inner vitality and functionality we associate with youth and the capacity to live a long and healthy life.

#4. Weight Loss. Fasting shifts your body from using glucose as its primary fuel to using fat for fuel, which leads to weight loss, detoxification, and numerous other health benefits.

#5. Fasting leads to increased energy, since 60% of the body’s energy is no longer spent on digestion. Certain forms of fasting also encourage mitochondrial (cellular) energy production. It is an incredible method for freeing up stagnant energy that the body can then use to promote healing and recovery from chronic infection and disease.

#6. Fasting is unique in its ability to initiate the restoration of vitality and healing of deeper layers of damaged tissue. A team of researchers from the University of Southern California recently discovered that fasting initiates the regeneration of stem cells. These are the cells the body uses to renew organs and tissues in order to repair and replace damaged tissues throughout the body.

#7. Fasting improves cognitive function, brain structure, and promotes deeper sleep and nervous system relaxation. These benefits are clear from both scientific studies done comparing fasting and non-fasting rats, as well as my own personal experience and clinical experience guiding many people through short and long-term fasts.

#8. It normalizes insulin and leptin sensitivity. This means food sensitivities and allergies can be minimized, and health issues like diabetes, blood sugar problems, and adrenal taxation can be restored through the rejuvenation of the adrenals, pancreas, and gut through the use of regular fasting practices.

#9. Fasting initiates autophagy, a vital process in which your body consumes dead disease matter, damaged tissue, and faulty cells – like a massive clean-up and recycling effort to beautify and preserve the health of your inner and outer landscape.

#10. Reduce and control inflammation. Fasting can massively diminish inflammation, as well as pain and symptoms related to inflammation anywhere in the body.

plantingtree-ulI can’t think of any other healing strategy or medical treatment that has such widespread beneficial effects.

Adding a fasting practice to your Lyme recovery process may seem challenging at first, but with the proper knowledge and guidance it’s very do-able, even for busy parents or professionals, or very sick people.

There are many types of fasting liquids that are excellent for supplying nutrients and energy for healing and staying active while still reaping the benefits of fasting. Start with a small fasting challenge, and work up from there.

I hope this inspires you to stay tuned for more great educational content about the power and effectiveness of fasting, and how you can begin to incorporate it into your life and Lyme recovery plan.

 


Ready to learn how to effectively, safely detox – and literally clear the way for healing? Check out Detox For Lyme, our 8-week online course, which teaches you everything you need to know to cleanse and fast, whether you are just learning how or ready to move to an advanced level of cleansing.

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Showing 15 comments
  • Corinne
    Reply

    I was just about to start a 3 day fast and then became sick and started antibiotic treatment for Lyme. Is it safe to fast while taking doxycycline? Or would it be better to wait?

    • Hillary Thing
      Reply

      Hi Corinne, FYI for the future, I wouldn’t fast while on Doxy so as not to overburden your body with a cleansing reaction while dealing with die-off. However, a light cleansing diet would be ideal!

  • karin
    Reply

    Hello, I just started a 5 day water fast and hope it will help me to deal with my lyme disease too. I have already undergone two antibiotic treatments but are still testing positive on the western blot. However, I was wondering where does your information come from when you say that fasting can improve or cure Lyme disease? I would like to get more information on that. Thanks a lot for your work on this website!

    • Hillary Thing
      Reply

      Hi Karin, How did your water fast go? I am sure it was helpful for your Lyme, although it is a complicated disease and there is no magic bullet. I don’t know of any specific studies done with treating Lyme disease with fasting. I do have a lot of evidence from treating hundreds of patients in my clinic with cleansing at various levels, sometimes including fasting. It is a systemic and systematic healer, and there is no way it can’t support the body in recovering from Lyme disease.

  • Antonia
    Reply

    Thank you for this article. I had been fasting pretty regularly and seeing great health gains. But I got Lyme and am in treatment, 300mg/day with Doxy split into two doses, 12 hours apart, taken with food. So obviously, I can’t fast when I must eat food every 12 hours, and in fact, I have to eat later at night than I want to in order to get to the “12 hours” part. I’m a thyroid patient and take thyroid medication, so I wait in the morning for an hour after taking the thyroid meds before I eat breakfast tobalkow them to absorb. This whole thing is so frustrating! So what I’m trying to research is, if I fast for 72 or more hours to rebuild the immune system (thus not eating and not taking the Doxy), will I be accelerating my healing from Lyme? Or will I be setting it back due to stopping the Doxy for three days? I don’t want those little buggers, the Lyme spirochetes* so have free rein to reproduce while I stop taking ylthe Doxy, which is working for me and I don’t want to do something to slow down my healing process.

    I can’t find research anywhere on this. Perhaps it just hasn’t been done, and I need to be my own guinea pig.

    • Hillary Thing
      Reply

      Hi Antonia, Don’t fast while taking the Doxy, just take that as prescribed. After you complete the course of antibiotics, then do some fasting. The best of both worlds will work in your favor. I hope you are feeling much better.

  • Suzanne Furman
    Reply

    Hi Hilary, would the master cleanse or a green juice cleanse be considered a fast? Can you recommend where to find some good guidelines on a fast? Thank you!

    • Hillary Thing
      Reply

      Hi Suzanne, yes the master cleanse or a green juice cleanse are considered fasts (juice fast if you’re juicing). If you want a real education in the facets of cleansing and fasting, then my best recommendation is our online program, Detox For Lyme (look under “patients” in the nav bar). Otherwise, check out our 2-part blog on fasting: Part 1 = https://uprootinglyme.com/fasting-lyme-recovery-reap-benefits-part-1/

  • Jest
    Reply

    Hello, I do omad, should I take my Buhner protocol capsules during the fast? Or could I take all of them in one time somewhere around my meal? What would be the best to treat Lyme and to have best benefits of fasting and herbs? I don’t know how to combine Buhner herbs with fasting…

    • Hillary Thing
      Reply

      Hi Jest,

      It can work well either way – some people choose to take a break from their herbs while fasting. Others continue if they feel very dependent on them for symptom control.

  • Jest
    Reply

    Hello, I do omad, should I take my Buhner protocol capsules during the fast? Or could I take all of them in one time somewhere around my meal? What would be the best to treat Lyme and to have best benefits of fasting and herbs? I don’t know how to combine Buhner herbs with fasting…

    • Hillary Thing
      Reply

      Hi Jest, it is fine to take the herbs while fasting, with or without food. Pay attention to what your body is wanting or not wanting – do you sense it will be helpful to your healing to continue with the herbs each day or to take a break? There is not right or wrong way for every body. In general, I encourage taking the herbs if you can. Best wishes to you!

  • Franci
    Reply

    Dear Hillary,
    I contracted Lyme’s in August 2019, but had no problems until the last couple of months. It started in late March, when I suddenly felt as if there were strong bandages around my knees, making me unable to squat. But I was still able to dance, run and workout, which I gladly did…until a day in early July, when I was jogging aorund the town and fell. I kind of ran for some meters again, but I dragged myself home and had to use crutches for a couple of days. I was able to walk within a week or so, but my symptoms are getting worse. My knees are swollen, and the angle I can bend (or fold) them seems to be diminishing every week. I used to have a tennis elbow in 2015, but at that time I overworked my elbow for a month with garden chores. These days it only takes a day of garden work to feel (almost) the same pain in my elbow.
    I am a regular faster, usually do 24 hours (or less), 3-4 times a week. I have done three 72 hour fasts, and every time the symptoms eased. With refeed they got back. I eat a clean ketogenic diet with lots of fresh fruits, which I know is not keto, but organic and our own, right from the tree. It can’t be bad 🙂
    I have decided to go for the Breuss protocol, a modified version, where not only beetroots, celeriac and carrots are allowed, but to some extent, other organic, ketogenic vegetables. And maybe, just maybe when I get really hungry, some flax or hemp seeds.
    When winter hits, I am going to try going carnivore. Actually, I love organs, offals and fat a lot.
    BMI is between 20-21.
    Any tips or suggestions are appreciated. Thanks,

  • AK
    Reply

    I recommend 20/4 fasting. Eat small meals/snacks in that window. Avoid dairy proteins.

    • Hillary Thing
      Reply

      Thanks for the recommendation AK!

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