Petra @newmiboJuice fasting seems to be a trending weight-loss quick fix and generally accepted as “fasting” whereas liquid fat fasting seems to be often misunderstood even debunked as not “fasting” and even a ridiculous idea if you’re trying to lose weight. Let’s put these head to head so that you can decide for yourself.
Juice fasting – I refer to fruit juice fasting used as a meal replacement for several days
Fat fasting – I refer to LIQUID fat fasting used as a meal replacement for up to 5 days.
SEMANTICS
Fasting generally means complete abstinence from food. It also has another meaning which implies limitations, for example juice fasting means you’re limited to only drinking juice, fruit fasting means you only eat fruit, so in the same sense fat fasting means you’re only limited to fats. In this sense of a word fat fasting is just as much fasting as juice fasting is.
NEW TREND
JUICE FASTING
In order to extract enough quantity of juice from fruits to be able to replace your meals you need a juicer. The first juicer was invented in 1936 by a doctor Norman Walker.
FAT FASTING
Replacing meals with butter tea dates back to 7th century Tibet. People used to add butter to their drinks for satiety and energy and drank it as a soup in place of a meal when out and about. Furthermore, fat from cooked meat and bones, otherwise known as broth, has been drunk for thousands of years.
RISK OF DIABETES type 2
JUICE FASTING
When juicing a fruit, the fibre which slows down the absorption of sugar is completely removed. Without fibre the extracted fructose/sugar is absorbed immediately which is why your blood sugar will sky rocket after drinking a glass of fruit juice.
A research paper published in the British Medical Journal concluded that consumption of whole fruit is associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes whereas consumption of fruit juice resulted in higher risk.
FAT FASTING
Fat does not raise blood sugar. Fat fasting could in fact help reverse type 2 diabetes in combination with intermittent fasting.
TEETH
JUICE FASTING
Fruit juice is extracted fructose aka fruit sugar and water. Imagine drinking several glasses of sugar water per day. The British Dental Association described the effect of replacing meals with juice as a quick fix to weight loss as
teeth being bathed in sugar and acid at frequent intervals throughout the day
They recommend you brush your teeth after each glass of juice but should wait at least 30 minutes before brushing. Fruit juice softens tooth enamel which is why brushing straight after will do more harm than good. Ideally you should wait 1hr before brushing.
FAT FASTING
Fat contains zero sugar and zero carbohydrates. Fat will not cause tooth damage. In fact some people use fat, specifically coconut oil, to improve their oral hygiene. Have you heard of oil pulling? Oil pulling is an ancient practice believed to cure many diseases as well as improve oral hygiene.
This review concluded that oil pulling
can be safely used as an adjunct to maintain good oral hygiene..
KETOSIS
JUICE FASTING
Ketosis is a fat burning state created by lack of carbohydrates. You will be nowhere near ketosis when juice fasting. Enough said.
FAT FASTING
You will reach ketosis anywhere between 24-36 hours of fat fasting. This has been confirmed in our Fat Fasting Group by everyone who tested their ketone levels, including myself. You will start releasing fat in the form of ketones generally within 36 hours of fat fasting. This could be quicker if your last meal (before your fast begins) was low in carbohydrates but nevertheless even if your last meal was a chocolate dessert you will still reach ketosis. I have tested both scenarios and can confirm this from my own experience.
Established benefits of ketosis are :
appetite regulation, weight-loss, reversal of diabetes and pre diabetes, seizure management
HUNGER
JUICE FASTING
You will be very hungry. You will be in an extreme caloric restricted state with high blood glucose levels, not ingesting any protein or fat, and you will have also removed fiber, the only satiating part of a fruit. You will be in a constant state of hangry.
FAT FASTING
Your hunger will significantly lessen once you reach ketosis. You will be using your stored fat for fuel. Your fat is stored food energy which you are now able to access. Furthermore, fat is very satiating even in small amounts.
What do you think will curb hunger more effectively; 300 kcal of pure fat or a 300 kcal glass of juice? People are often shocked that they don’t feel hungry during fat fasting. You have to try it to believe it.
CRAVINGS
JUICE FASTING
Juice fasting provides a constant sugar supply to the body. You are continuously stimulating your taste buds as well as raising blood sugar. Sugar is highly addictive plus it encourages you to eat and crave more. You are not suppressing appetite or cravings, you are doing the opposite.
FAT FASTING
Fat fasting provides zero sugar into the blood stream. You are training your body to become fat adapted. You will stop craving sugar after a few days. You no longer have to use will power to stop yourself from reaching for a biscuit. This is extremely liberating for many people and will help you to lose weight in the long run.
Fat fasting can be used to completely reinvent your taste buds and overcome sugar addiction.
WEIGHT LOSS
JUICE FASTING
You will lose weight with juice fasting. This is guaranteed. I have done a 7 day juice fast in the past and lost 9lb in a week. Of course I gained it all back as soon as I started eating.
You will lose weight because you create a significant caloric deficit and you will be using the bathroom a lot. So yes, if you want to lose half a stone in a week for a week, juice fasting is definitely effective.
FAT FASTING
You will lose weight with fat fasting. I did a 4 day fat fast and lost a visible amount of weight, at this stage of my life I do not weight myself but in a 3 day Fat Fasting group challenge participants have repeatedly reported a 4lb weight loss.
You will lose fat because you maintain low insulin and you start releasing ketones which can be measured in your breath, blood or urine. You can literally see your fat coming out of your body. Yes it will be a mixture of some dietary fat and some body fat.
Will you gain it all back once you resume regular eating? Not, if you use fat fasting as a stepping stone to intermittent fasting or to a low carb diet.
DETOX
JUICE FASTING
If you are doing it for detoxing I’m sorry to let you know that there is absolutely no evidence to support such claims.
As mentioned in an article by the Harvard Medical Publishing “detox diet” claims are a fiction;
Believe it or not, your body comes equipped with a natural detoxification system in the form of the kidneys and liver.
FAT FASTING
Makes no claims of detoxing.
VITAMINS
JUICE FASTING
You will increase vitamin intake with juice fasting. It might be a good idea for people who are severely deficient in vitamins as a quick and easy way to raise those vitamin levels. Fruit juice should only ever be used as a vitamin shot.
Even so, some fruits such as apples carry most of their vitamins in the skin which is removed in the process of juicing. Moreover, Vitamins A, D, E and K are fat soluble vitamins, these absorb better if fat is present. Juice fasting provides zero fat meaning you may not absorb these even if you take a supplement .
FAT FASTING
You risk vitamin deficiency with extended fat fasting which is why the recommended time is no longer than 5 days. Taking a multivitamin supplement may prevent this.
COST AND PRACTICALITY
JUICE FASTING
This can be extremely costly as you will be required to juice a vast quantity of fruits. Unless you live in a tropical country or grow your own fruit, you are bound to spend a lot of money on the ingredients. I live in London, UK and the cost of my 7 day fruit fast ended up higher than my usual family weekly food shopping. It was also very difficult to find quality ripe fruit. You might also want to consider season, location and transport.
FAT FASTING
Fat is high in calories which means a little goes a long way. We are talking 1 tablespoon at the time maybe 2. You can buy a jar of organic virgin cold press coconut oil and use it for your 4 day fat fast with plenty left over.
You can also use it as a body moisturiser, makeup remover, and a hair mask. You do not need to worry about the season, ripeness, location or transportation. Same applies to all the other fat sources you may choose to use: block of butter, tub of heavy whipping cream, jar of ghee.
THE AFTERMATH
JUICE FASTING
Possibly putting yourself at risk of type 2 diabetes, developing or encouraging sugar addition, increasing your hunger, appetite and cravings, possibly damaging your teeth with the prospect of regaining the lost weight when you resume eating.
You could, however improve some vitamins levels and lose weight.
FAT FASTING
Possibly suppressing appetite, reducing if not completely diminishing sugar cravings entering ketosis ( the fat burning stage), releasing ketones (the superior fuel for the body), stabilising blood glucose, which could also positively impact energy levels and balance mood. You will be in the fast mimicking state.
You could, however risk some vitamin deficiency if you didn’t take a multivitamin supplement or continued for longer than 5 days.
