This week, I was shocked to see headlines suggesting that intermittent fasting, particularly the type of fasting known as time-restricted eating (TRE), can have negative effects on the heart and increase the risk of a fatal heart attack. I received it and was surprised.

After the news broke, my phone was buzzing with calls asking for comment. Because, like many others, I have incorporated various elements of intermittent fasting into my daily life over the years to help with weight management and lower blood sugar levels. . In fact, intermittent fasting is a core part of my best-selling Fast 800 Diet.

Over the past 10 years, I have talked to many experts, read many studies, and participated in studies that have shown how beneficial intermittent fasting can be. But will this new study change my mind?

Intermittent fasting comes in many forms, from the 5:2 diet (reducing calories two days a week) to time-restricted eating (TRE), which simply reduces the amount of time you eat.

Essentially, this is a way to give your body a break from digesting food and help trigger “autophagy,” a type of cellular “spring cleaning” where old cells are broken down and recycled.

Dr. Michael Mosley was perplexed by research showing that following a 16:8 pattern of time-restricted eating increases the risk of death from cardiovascular disease by 91 percent.

A review of all the best studies published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2019 found that “intermittent fasting has widespread benefits for many health conditions, including obesity and diabetes. ” concludes. [type 2 ­diabetes]cardiovascular disease, cancer, neurological disease [such as dementia]’.

That’s why I’m excited about this new study that suggests that following a 16:8 time-restricted eating pattern (fasting for 16 hours and eating within 8 hours) increases your risk of dying from cardiovascular disease by 91 percent. I was very confused by the research. disease.

Is it possible that I, and many others, got things very wrong? I read the research summary, but this is the only one currently available, and it is essentially a summary. I’m sure there’s nothing to worry about.

A previously unpublished study by researchers at Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine examined data from the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey collected between 2003 and 2018.

In these surveys, Americans were asked about their eating habits. What the Chinese researchers did was to select people who checked a box that said they had limited their food intake to no more than eight hours over a two-day period. The researchers then cross-referenced these people with the U.S. National Death Index database to see what happened to them.

These intermittent fasters were found to have almost twice the risk of dying from heart disease compared to people who did not check these conditions.

There are many problems in trying to understand this research. In particular, we don’t know how old the participants were, how healthy they were, whether their memories are accurate, and, importantly, what those two days represented. They did the rest of the week.

Kevin McConway, Emeritus Professor of Applied Statistics at the Open University, points out: Therefore, linking these patterns to intentionally long-term, time-restricted dietary interventions appears to be well beyond the data. ”

Sir David Spiegelhalter, emeritus professor of statistics at the University of Cambridge, agreed, adding somewhat scathingly: “The press release should not have been included in this summary.”

Other experts believe that people who report eating only within eight-hour windows may have done so because they had heart disease in the past, or because they worked shifts. It is possible that this diet was associated with an increased risk of heart disease. Type 2 diabetes.

Finally, we don’t know what these people were consuming. Was it a healthy Mediterranean diet or processed junk food? No, my belief in the benefits of intermittent fasting has not been shaken by this summary.

The latest research suggests that if you’re happy with your TRE regimen, it’s better to avoid eating a big dinner and eat more calories early.

A study of 100,000 adults published in Nature Communications found that eating breakfast before 8 a.m. and stopping eating 12 to 13 hours later was associated with higher risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes. was found to lead to the greatest improvement in Eating after 9pm was found to increase your risk of heart disease by 13%.

(This is probably because the rhythm of your body clock and the production of hormones such as insulin work better.)

Therefore, I recommend avoiding late night eating (try to stop 2-3 hours before bedtime), aiming for a 12-14 hour “fasting” period, and sticking to a nutritious Mediterranean diet. It is recommended.

Scans could help detect different types of colon cancer more quickly

The good news is that survival rates for most cancers are skyrocketing thanks to screening and new treatments.

Unfortunately, the incidence of some cancers is still rising, especially in younger groups. One of the most obvious examples is colorectal cancer. A recent paper published in Annals of Oncology found that the number of deaths from bowel cancer among young people in the UK this year is up 26% for men and nearly 39% for women compared to 2018. It is predicted.

Researchers at the University of Milan blame a sharp increase in obesity rates, along with heavy drinking and decreased physical activity. But, of course, sometimes it’s just bad luck. The best way to protect yourself is to catch an infection early. So if you are sent by the NHS to take a test at home (in England he is eligible for people over 60, but soon he will be eligible for everyone over 50), then do it.

This test involves collecting a small sample of your poop and sending it to a lab to test for trace amounts of blood. If there are signs of blood, you will have a colonoscopy to examine your intestines (and possibly a biopsy). I’ve done this myself, and while it’s an important test, I can’t say I enjoyed the process.

So I was pleased to see new research from the University of Glasgow showing that PET scans could be used instead of biopsies in the future. This showed that PET scans can diagnose different types of colorectal cancer more quickly and accurately, potentially helping to choose the best treatment for patients.

Another good news is that researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have discovered how early-stage colon cancer evades the immune system.

This is done by producing SOX17, a protein normally produced by the fetus to protect itself from attack by the mother’s immune system. Due to the mutation, intestinal cells also start making SOX17. If scientists can find a way to block SOX17, it could provide a new way to treat early-stage cancer.

For ethical and environmental reasons, I’m trying to eat less meat. So, in addition to tofu and lentils, we are exploring meat alternatives such as insects, which are rich in protein and nutrients. fiber.

I tried locusts, grasshoppers, and mealworms and all were fine. But what about eating snakes?

A recent study by Australia’s Macquarie University concluded that snakes are a good source of protein and are more environmentally friendly than eating beef or lamb.

That’s because cold-blooded reptiles are more efficient at converting the food they eat into protein than warm-blooded animals.

The last time I went to China, I was served snake stew. It felt a little tough, but it tasted similar to chicken and was delicious.