As anyone who has broken a fast will tell you, going about it the wrong way — particularly when you eat a lot at once, or eat high-fat or spicy foods — can cause digestive issues, leading to heartburn and bloating, according to Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi.
If you want to avoid that unpleasant possibility, what are the best foods to eat after fasting?
Not just any food or beverage will do after many hours without eating. Here are some foods and drinks that will nourish you after a fast without causing digestive upset (along with some to avoid).
Best Foods and Drinks to Have After a Fast
1. Fluids
During your fast, it’s advised you drink plenty of water, according to the British Nutrition Foundation. As you end your fast, include beverages like milk, fruit juices, or blended drinks like smoothies.
These drinks can be a gentle way of getting your body some nutrition — they contain vitamins and minerals — without overtaxing the digestive system.
2. Dried Fruit
During Ramadan, a holy month in the Islamic faith which involves fasting during daylight hours, dates are traditionally eaten to break the fast, the British Nutrition Foundation notes.
As a whole, unprocessed food, dates are a source of carbohydrates, including fiber, as well as vitamins and minerals. A single pitted Medjool date has 18 grams of carbohydrates, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Other dried fruits that provide carbs, fiber, and micronutrients, like dried apricots or raisins, are good fast-breaking foods as well.
3. Soup
When breaking a fast, soups are another staple, according to the British Nutrition Foundation. Look for soups that have protein via lentils or beans for staying power until your next meal, and carbs, like pasta or rice, for quick energy.
Can You Eat Meat After Fasting?
Yes, eating meat or other protein-rich foods after fasting is recommended, according to the British Nutrition Foundation. Eating smaller portions more slowly can also help prevent digestive distress after a fast, UCLA Health notes.
However, you should limit the fatty foods you eat to minimize the chances of digestive issues, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi warns. Stick with lean proteins (such as plant proteins and fish over red meat), say researchers who published a guide to fasting.
This is because you want to maximize the nutrition you take in when you’re limiting the time window where you can eat.
How Long Should You Fast?
How long to fast before breaking your fast really depends on the diet you’re following. According to Cleveland Clinic, some common intermittent fasting diets include:
- Time-restricted fasting: Food is eaten within a limited number of hours (such as 8, 10, or 12 hours) — and nothing is consumed outside of that time block. An example of this is 16:8 fasting, where you eat during eight hours of the day, and fast for the remaining 16.
- 5:2 fasting: You eat as usual for five days, then restrict to 500 calories per day, for two non-consecutive days each week.
- Alternate-day fasting: Every other day, you consume minimal (about 25 percent of your normal daily intake) or no calories. This method has been connected to increased LDL cholesterol (the “bad” cholesterol) in research.
- Eat: Stop: Eat: This method involves 24-hour, no-calorie fasting periods, typically once or twice a week. The side effects that can accompany this fasting method can be extreme.
But fasting isn’t just a fad diet — it’s also been around for ages as a religious tradition.
Ramadan is one such religious fasting event: Muslims don’t eat or drink anything between sunrise and sunset during the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. It’s also a time for spiritual reflection and prayer, the British Nutrition Foundation notes.
The same goes for Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish faith, which is also a 25-hour period where Jews abstain from eating and drinking (among a short list of other things). This holiday asks people of the faith to seek forgiveness for their sins, according to Britannica. In both Islam and Judaism, those with health concerns are exempted from fasting.
No matter your situation, talk to your doctor about fasting before you try it.
What Fasting Does to Your Body
These religious fasting traditions have spurred much interest in the health effects of fasting.
Fasting can play a role in reducing oxidative damage from free radicals, reducing inflammation, and helping to protect cells. If fasting lasts long enough to cause the body to switch from using sugar (glucose) to using fats for energy, it can decrease blood sugar and insulin levels and contribute to fat burning, according to research.
It may have other health benefits as well, including decreases in triglyceride levels, appetite, signs of aging, and weight. It can improve blood pressure, gut health, immune health, sleep quality, and concentration, according to Cleveland Clinic.
But during a fast, if you’re not drinking water (which is the case for some religious fasts), your kidneys hold on to as much water as possible, so it’s likely that you’ll urinate less and experience mild dehydration, the British Nutrition Foundation notes.
You may experience headaches, fatigue, and difficulty concentrating with mild dehydration, but research suggests that it’s not harmful to health, as long as you consume adequate fluids during the period of time when you break the fast. If you’re dizzy or can’t stand, you need to drink water — preferably something with sugar and salt, like a sports electrolyte drink — immediately.
Does Fasting Help With Weight Loss?
It’s still unclear if any type of intermittent fasting is beneficial for weight loss, according to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, which doesn’t recommend it for weight loss or any other condition.
There’s research that supports intermittent fasting for weight loss, but the science isn’t all that clear cut. Among the three main fasting types (alternate-day fasting, modified fasting — which would include 5:2 fasting — and time-restricted fasting), results vary.
Alternate-day fasting may have the same efficacy as a typical low-calorie diet plan, but research is limited and more studies are needed. The results of modified-fasting studies were contradictory; some showed more weight loss than on a traditional calorie-restricted diet, others saw no difference. Most studies don’t show a difference between time-restricted fasting and traditional calorie-restricted diets, either.
It also has potential drawbacks and side effects, such as hunger, fatigue, headaches, irritability, and a lack of energy. You may need to modify the timing to make intermittent fasting work for you, though it’s not ideal for everyone, Cleveland Clinic notes. Listen to your body.
Intermittent fasting is contraindicated if you’re pregnant or breastfeeding, and for people who have certain chronic illnesses, who are malnourished, have hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), or have a history of an eating disorder. If you’re in perimenopause, fasting might affect hormones, so proceed with caution.
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