I'm starting a tea fast soon, anyone want to join me?

Robin_Bin

Ghandi used to fast a lot as well. Went for 21 days on a hunger strike and didn't die so I think it's pretty safe. As long as we don't exercise while doing it.

good lord

you think 21 days without food is "pretty safe"?

please do some research and quit promoting unsafe and dangerous practices

Lol I didn't want to get into a debate but seriously don't make me laugh. How about we both go to the doctor and compare our blood sugar, blood pressure, ph levels, hdl and ldl cholesterol levels, triglycerides, electrolytes and then maybe you can school me?

Part of the point of fasting as a protest is that it is potentially dangerous. Some people die from hunger protests.
I'm not going to get into the debate about intermittent fasting (IF), but using a hunger protest fast to say that fasting is "pretty safe" both misses the point of the protest (thank goodness enough people didn't treat it as an equivalent to fasting for weight loss or "cleansing"!) and implies that just because someone lived through an extreme situation that it's safe -- and huge leap here -- fine for everyone to do the same if less extreme.

abrahamsitososa

Ghandi used to fast a lot as well. Went for 21 days on a hunger strike and didn't die so I think it's pretty safe. As long as we don't exercise while doing it.

good lord

you think 21 days without food is "pretty safe"?

please do some research and quit promoting unsafe and dangerous practices

Lol I didn't want to get into a debate but seriously don't make me laugh. How about we both go to the doctor and compare our blood sugar, blood pressure, ph levels, hdl and ldl cholesterol levels, triglycerides, electrolytes and then maybe you can school me?

Part of the point of fasting as a protest is that it is potentially dangerous. Some people die from hunger protests.
I'm not going to get into the debate about intermittent fasting (IF), but using a hunger protest fast to say that fasting is "pretty safe" both misses the point of the protest (thank goodness enough people didn't treat it as an equivalent to fasting for weight loss or "cleansing"!) and implies that just because someone lived through an extreme situation that it's safe -- and huge leap here -- fine for everyone to do the same if less extreme.

Ok I'm not saying I'm going to fast for 21 days like Ghandi. My respects to him though he's one of my heroes and he used to fast for over a week at a time. If you knew a little bit of history you would know that the hunger strike was not the only time he ever fasted. I trust my body to be strong enough to survive a couple of days even up to 1 week of fasting without any problems. I'm not sure how tea will work out for me but it doesn't hurt to give it a try and I believe it will be beneficial to my health. I've done 3 days before with only water and I felt GREAT! Never felt so good in my life.

2hobbit1

A four day fast for an 18 year old is not a good idea! Your body has not finished growing yet and need good nutrition.

Robin_Bin

Ghandi used to fast a lot as well. Went for 21 days on a hunger strike and didn't die so I think it's pretty safe. As long as we don't exercise while doing it.

good lord

you think 21 days without food is "pretty safe"?

please do some research and quit promoting unsafe and dangerous practices

Lol I didn't want to get into a debate but seriously don't make me laugh. How about we both go to the doctor and compare our blood sugar, blood pressure, ph levels, hdl and ldl cholesterol levels, triglycerides, electrolytes and then maybe you can school me?

Part of the point of fasting as a protest is that it is potentially dangerous. Some people die from hunger protests.
I'm not going to get into the debate about intermittent fasting (IF), but using a hunger protest fast to say that fasting is "pretty safe" both misses the point of the protest (thank goodness enough people didn't treat it as an equivalent to fasting for weight loss or "cleansing"!) and implies that just because someone lived through an extreme situation that it's safe -- and huge leap here -- fine for everyone to do the same if less extreme.

Ok I'm not saying I'm going to fast for 21 days like Ghandi. My respects to him though he's one of my heroes and he used to fast for over a week at a time. If you knew a little bit of history you would know that the hunger strike was not the only time he ever fasted. I trust my body to be strong enough to survive a couple of days even up to 1 week of fasting without any problems. I'm not sure how tea will work out for me but it doesn't hurt to give it a try and I believe it will be beneficial to my health. I've done 3 days before with only water and I felt GREAT! Never felt so good in my life.

I do know that Mahatma Gandhi fasted other times and for other reasons. He also gave up many other material things, but that's not relevant here, and I said I wasn't going to get into IF -- it's a whole different topic than fasting as part of a protest, and my point is that that the two should not be confused.
I think it was demeaning the purpose of his and other hunger protest fasts to use them as a justification for fasting's "safety". And it doesn't make logical sense either... since part of the point of hunger protest fasts is that they can be extremely unsafe and even deadly. (Can I assume that you are aware of forced feedings of hunger protesters so they wouldn't end up being martyrs by starving to death?)

taylorwaylor

I'm in! I miss fasting I'm in a different time zone so message me when your fast starts

I'm not really for or against fasting... I think it would be interesting to try, but i only would for 24 hours...
But why are you even fasting?! Now you'r going from eating 100 calories to none?

PapaverSomniferum

It is funny how people chime in with the starvation mode concern and the unhealthyness of fasting. I think being obese or overweight on a daily basis exceeds the risk of periodic daily fasting. In addition, I can imagine a lot of people are against this periodic fasting due to the actual inability and lack of self control to do a challenge like this. In addition, I am not a doctor but I don't think 96 hours of fasting is going to be tradgic to ones metabolism or their long term health. At least they are staying hydrated.

Current scientific literature seems to support short term fasting. All studies either point to fasting being beneficial, or to having no effect whatsoever.

The oh-my-gawd-starvation-mode-you're-gonna-die bullsh*t is complete bro-science and wives tales.

Correct! Fasting is now scientifically proven to heal the body & extend life! Unless you are underweight , near goal weight or have a medical condition such as diabetes or heart failure a 3 day fast will do more good than harm. Modern culture and big bucks in the food industry would have us believe we need 3 square meals a day every day to thrive. We don't, we all, me included eat far far too much!
I would join you myself but I already have a 5:3 ratio restricted calorie (0-500max) day lifestyle..which my GP approves off and am happily losing weight on...and with improving health!!!

How about producing the references for your scientific studies proving an overall survival benefit for fasting - I for one would really like to evaluate the study design and results of these trials, as well as the publication source. I'm sure others would like to have this information also.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110403090259.htm

http://www.healthpromoting.com/water-fasting/fasting-research

http://www.leangains.com/2010/10/top-ten-fasting-myths-debunked.html

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=fasting-might-boost-chemo

http://europepmc.org/search/?page=1&query=KW:"Fasting"

http://www.alanaragon.com/an-objective-look-at-intermittent-fasting.html

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/feb/18/fasting-protect-brain-diseases-scientists

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I'd find more but

i got bored.

VanillaBone

Ingredients
•1 pound of fleshy beef
•1 1/2 pints of water
•1/4 saltspoonful of salt

Instructions

Cut the beef into small square pieces, after trimming off all the fat, and put it into a baking-jar, with the above proportion of water and salt; cover the jar well, place it in a warm, but not hot oven, and bake for 3 or 4 hours. When the oven is very fierce in the daytime, it is a good plan to put the jar in at night, and let it remain till the next morning, when the tea will be done. It should be strained, and put by in a cool place until wanted. It may also be flavoured with an onion, a clove, and a few sweet herbs, etc., when the stomach is sufficiently strong to take those.

Time: 3 or 4 hours, or to be left in the oven all night.

Sufficient: Allow 1 pound of meat for 1 pint of good beef tea.

Dave198lbs

A four day fast for an 18 year old is not a good idea! Your body has not finished growing yet and need good nutrition.

four days is too long for ANYBODY if you care about your health

24 hours is fine and maybe 36 hours but 4 days is dangerous, not needed and should not even be considered

nexangelus

Thing is folks, I do not think the poster is even 18...just saying...

mfpcopine

It is funny how people chime in with the starvation mode concern and the unhealthyness of fasting. I think being obese or overweight on a daily basis exceeds the risk of periodic daily fasting. In addition, I can imagine a lot of people are against this periodic fasting due to the actual inability and lack of self control to do a challenge like this. In addition, I am not a doctor but I don't think 96 hours of fasting is going to be tradgic to ones metabolism or their long term health. At least they are staying hydrated.

:flowerforyou:

This fast doesn't really appeal to me and it should be noted that the body doesn't need to be cleansed. I would also try to drink better-quality tea, which is likely to have fewer toxin. But I don't think an occasional four-day fast would be unhealthy for an otherwise healthy person.

xxnellie146xx

Putting the fasting argument aside, it seems like it would dehydrate you. Tea can have a lot of caffeine in it.

ravenchick

I'm in. As long as "tea fast" means - drinking a tea fast before I eat all my meals. That's it, right?

lol love this! This is my kind of tea fast!

Rawr1978

While im totally not in for this fast (im not even going to pretend that i could do it), it isn't unsafe. Too many people think that if they dare to eat under 1500 calories a day, "starvation mode" (which eating disorders completely disbunk btw) will set in. Do some research beyond nutrition books.
I've done fasting, and once i was over the hump, it felt great. I just cant do it now because I'm on my feet a lot, and i like food too much.

Rawr1978

Putting the fasting argument aside, it seems like it would dehydrate you. Tea can have a lot of caffeine in it.

This is also true. Another reason why if i were to fast, it wouldnt be a caffeine-based one...that's really the only true unhealthy aspect to it.

alarae

Not a big fan of fasting but what kind of teas will you be drinking? I might be interested. I'm at the hospital and there's nothing healthy here so fasting sounds like my best option at the moment.

Please tell me that "at the hospital" means you are visiting someone and NOT that you are either a patient (in which case, you shouldn't be fasting) or a medical professional (in which case, you should know better AND prolonged fasting could cause you to make a bad choice for one of your patients).

My baby is in the hospital. My son. And fasting is not a bad thing but I'm really not in the mood to debate this topic. I actually think it's a very healthy habit to fast once in a while to cleanse the body. It's debatable and controversial no doubt about it.

Sorry to hear your son is in the hospital. Hope he recovers quickly and you can both get out and enjoy some nice non hospital food.

ninerbuff

@Phaendra2013 I do this because I love fasting, and it is a great thing for your body, as long as you don't do it for long periods of time. It is a great cleanse for your body as the green tea contains many antioxidants, and it helps boost your metabolism

While is does have anti oxidants, there is no proof that metabolism is boosted. Also, while the fast is short, protein and fat are ESSENTIALS for good health, so omitting them from your diet does more harm than good.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

red_road

It is funny how people chime in with the starvation mode concern and the unhealthiness of fasting. I think being obese or overweight on a daily basis exceeds the risk of periodic daily fasting. In addition, I can imagine a lot of people are against this periodic fasting due to the actual inability and lack of self control to do a challenge like this. In addition, I am not a doctor but I don't think 96 hours of fasting is going to be tragic to ones metabolism or their long term health. At least they are staying hydrated.

THANK YOU! So many ignorant people on here. But then it is a public forum. I think you would have better luck joining a group on here that supports occasional fasting rather than posting it as a topic. I just would love to see the food diary's of the people on here blindly bashing fasting. But on here people are more supportive of someone eating 3000 calories a day of take out then 1100 of healthy food. Either way i think this is the last time im going to feed the trolls.

Firefox7275

@Phaendra2013 I do this because I love fasting, and it is a great thing for your body, as long as you don't do it for long periods of time. It is a great cleanse for your body as the green tea contains many antioxidants, and it helps boost your metabolism

There is zero scientific evidence to support your claims. Actually not eating slows the digestive system to a crawl, which actually PREVENTS your body eliminating waste! And if you don't eat your metabolism drops, the body cannot tell the difference between a famine and a fast or highly restrictive diet. Even standardised green tea extract (massively richer in polyphenols than homemade tea) is only associated with an ~80 calorie a day metabolism boost in the literature. Fasting can be dangerous by triggering electrolyte imbalances and dehydration, it's not really something you should be encouraging others to do when you know absolutely nothing about their health status.

PapaverSomniferum

It is funny how people chime in with the starvation mode concern and the unhealthiness of fasting. I think being obese or overweight on a daily basis exceeds the risk of periodic daily fasting. In addition, I can imagine a lot of people are against this periodic fasting due to the actual inability and lack of self control to do a challenge like this. In addition, I am not a doctor but I don't think 96 hours of fasting is going to be tragic to ones metabolism or their long term health. At least they are staying hydrated.

THANK YOU! So many ignorant people on here. But then it is a public forum. I think you would have better luck joining a group on here that supports occasional fasting rather than posting it as a topic. I just would love to see the food diary's of the people on here blindly bashing fasting. But on here people are more supportive of someone eating 3000 calories a day of take out then 1100 of healthy food. Either way i think this is the last time im going to feed the trolls.

but but but

if we don't feed them

how will we keep them fat?!

they'll go into starvation mode!!!!! and die!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

inuta

question...can i add milk to my tea.... n sugar?