Losing weight through intermittent fasting can “dramatically change” the way your brain works – both positively and negatively

A study suggests that intermittent fasting, championed by celebrities such as Hugh Jackman, Beyoncé and Kourtney Kardashian, can have significant effects on your brain.

Scientists at the Health Management Institute in Beijing have found that intermittent fasting can dramatically change gut bacteria and brain activity, which can have both positive and negative effects.

The most popular form of fad dieting – the time-restricted diet – involves limiting food intake to eight to ten hours a day and abstaining from food for 14 to 16 hours.

Another form of dieting is to alternate fasting days, when very little is eaten, with days of normal eating.

Chinese researchers examined the effects of this method of intermittent fasting on overweight and obese participants and found that the regimen led to a reduction in brain activity, which plays a role in appetite and addiction, as well as a concomitant increase in gut bacteria Attention, emotion and learning.

The results may suggest that intermittent fasting may do more for people than just help them lose weight.

Dr. Yongli Li, co-author of the study from the Henan Provincial People’s Hospital in China, said a healthy gut is essential for maintaining overall balance and improving health in all parts of the body.

Researchers studied 25 overweight and obese participants from China who followed two different intermittent fasting regimens for two months.

The participants were on average 27 years old and had a body weight or BMI between 28 and 45.

To show how fast diets affect the body, participants gI had stool samples, blood samples and brain scans taken.

First, they ate their usual food for four days so the researchers could estimate their average daily energy intake.

This was followed by a 32-day “strongly controlled fast” during which participants received personalized meals designed by a nutritionist whose caloric value gradually decreased to a quarter of their baseline energy intake.

Patients ate unlimited meals every other day and ate the restricted meals on the other days.

This was followed by a 30-day “low-controlled fast” during which they were given a list of recommended foods, but not the actual meals.

Female participants received compensation of 500 calories per day, while men received 600 calories.

Are YOU open and accommodating? There’s a good chance you’ll go vegan

If you find that you are open to trying new things and are a warm, polite person, you are more likely to go vegan.

The researchers found a decrease in activity in brain regions involved in regulating appetite and addiction after both periods of fasting. This could mean that people are more hungry.

Researchers have found that increased activity in the brain regions responsible for attention, emotions and learning means that people can be better at tasks that require these skills.

Researchers saw a sharp increase in the bacteria Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, Parabacteroides distasonis and Bacterocles uniformis in the gut microbiome.

Faecalibacterium prausnitzii increases the immune system’s ability to combat inflammatory interactions, while P. distasonis is thought to help alleviate obesity and Bacterocles uniformis improves the gut barrier.

Meanwhile, the number of E. coli bacteria decreased. The bacteria can help control appetite by releasing hormones that tell the brain that the body is full. With less E. coli bacteria, people may have less control over their appetite.

Participants also lost an average of 16.7 pounds during the study.

Dr Li said: “A healthy, balanced gut microbiome is critical for energy homeostasis and the maintenance of normal weight.”

“An abnormal gut microbiome, on the other hand, can change our eating behavior by affecting certain areas of the brain involved in addiction.”

The study was published in the journal Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology.