BBC Special: The Power of Intermittent Fasting

[Paul McGlothin]

Al Pater thoughtfully let Society listmates know about a new, important BBC special on calorie restriction and intermittent fasting. Anyone interested in CR will benefit from watching it. Congratulations and thanks to Joe Cordell and Luigi Fontana for doing such a good job in the production. The production made several errors in how CR was explained. So we wrote this thank you letter to the BBC to encourage more programs, while informing the public about how CR really works. I hope you find it helpful. I will embed the production's recent YouTube videos in replies to this thread. Enjoy it!

 

 

 

 

Paul

 

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

 

 

 

Letter to the BBC

 

 

The BBC recently released a special, hosted by Dr. Michael Mosley, "The Power of Intermittent Fasting." We appreciate Dr. Mosley's affable hosting of this program. It gives hope to millions that living long and healthfully is not only possible but that people are doing it right now.

 

Dr. Mosley visited the home of our friend, Joe Cordell, for a lesson in how he practices calorie restriction. From observing Joe’s large bowl of fruit each morning and perhaps other meals, Dr. Mosley concluded that he could not practice calorie restriction. This so often happens in personal interviews, where a very narrow idea emerges about what calorie restriction really is. On the other hand, we prefer breakfast to be a very large meal, loaded with vegetables and low GI grains and including some fruit and fish a few times a week. Most important, the food should be delicious and satisfying so it is fun!

 

After Dr. Mosley decided that he couldn’t practice CR, he began to explore the eating pattern of alternate-day fasting or intermittent fasting: having all you want on one day – or sometimes longer – and going without almost any food the next.

 

Dr. Mosley finally decided that he wanted to follow a 5:2 variation: eating "ad lib" for five days a week and eating only 600 calories for the other two days. Although Dr. Mosley’s voice narrated the point that limiting protein intake, too, is important for calorie restriction benefits to be achieved, he chose a very high protein diet for his "fasting days" – eggs and a small slice of ham in the morning, followed by fish with lots of vegetables in the evening. In the program, I also saw some strawberries on Dr. Mosley’s breakfast table. Here’s a macronutrient breakdown of how such a meal might look, as analyzed by the NutriBase CR Way Edition software that we use to check the content of our meals. Notice the percentages of macronutrients of such a meal plan:

 

 

 

Calories from fat: 44.20%

 

Calories from protein: 42.38%

 

Calories from carbohydrate: only 13.60%

 

 

Of course this is just a guestimate. Perhaps Dr. Mosley can provide more details.

 

 

Such a high fat, high protein diet would allow little tryptophan absorption through the blood-brain barrier – resulting in very low levels of serotonin, the neurotransmitter that helps control satiety in the hypothalamus. That would likely make calorie restriction – or any form of dieting – difficult and unpleasant.

 

 

 

Here’s more about the relation between tryptophan in the blood and macronutrients:

 

Effects of normal meals rich in carbohydrates or proteins on plasma tryptophan and tyrosine ratios.

 

Wurtman RJ, Wurtman JJ, Regan MM, McDermott JM, Tsay RH, Breu JJ.

 

Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge 02139, USA.

 

American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2003 Jan;77(1):128-32

 

PMID: 12499331, NIH, NLM, PubMed access to MEDLINE biomedical citations

 

See the full abstract:

 

High protein intake might also inhibit activation of the sirtuin genes, which are important at the cellular level for calorie restriction benefits to be achieved. Sirtuins are NAD-dependent deacetylases, which means that to become active, they require a build-up of the energy-facilitating enzyme NAD. A primary pathway that makes NAD build-up possible requires the amino acid tryptophan: Tryptophan –> NAD –> Sirtuins 1-7.

 

 

In the program, Dr. Mosley mentioned that approximately 100,000 people are living the CR Way, worldwide. It turns out that the CR Way takes a very different approach to starting a calorie-restricted diet: Before people limit one calorie, they are encouraged to learn how diet and lifestyle choices affect emotions. Starter meals are suggested that increase neurotransmitters and other biochemistry that help people control cravings for comfort foods. You can find out more about it through this video of a presentation I made at the Dalman Symposium at the University of California, San Francisco.

 

 

I have been practicing calorie restriction happily for almost 20 years. However, if I chose the macronutrient ratio that Dr. Mosley did on his fasting days, CR would become difficult for me: I might want to give up CR. The film provides insights into conflicts that can arise when the brain biochemistry necessary for happy dieting seems to be in conflict with the rational knowledge that eating fewer calories will help us live longer and better.

 

 

Telling moments occur when we hear Dr. Mosley saying that he wants to avoid the problems of old age but can’t quite bring himself to follow a CR diet. The reality, though, is that the happiness biochemistry is not being taken into account. When it is, CR is easy and enjoyable.

 

 

This is important news for millions who want a healthful way to lose weight because it makes calorie restriction so much more doable.

 

 

The CR Society International and the CR Way very much appreciate the publicity that the BBC has given to calorie restriction. Now, we hope you will take it a step further and work with us to let the public know about the subtle dietary differences that make calorie restriction fun and easy to do.

 

 

Wishing you extraordinary health,

 

 

Paul McGlothin

 

VP, Research, CR Society, Intl: CRSociety.org

 

President, The CR Way Longevity Center, LivingTheCRWay.com

 

Paul@LivingTheCRWay.com

[Paul McGlothin]

Al Pater thoughtfully let Society listmates know about a new, important BBC special on calorie restriction and intermittent fasting. Anyone interested in CR will benefit from watching it. Congratulations and thanks to Joe Cordell and Luigi Fontana for doing such a good job in the production. The production made were several errors in how CR was explained. So we wrote this than you letter to the BBC to encourage more programs, while informing the public about how CR really works. I hope you find it helpful. I will embed the production's recent YouTube videos in replies to this thread. I hope you enjoy it!

 

 

 

 

Paul

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pD3ug4EaKb0

 

 

[Paul McGlothin]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tbMG5Ufuf4

 

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sG_aJ28g_DU

 

 

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H79p-2Mj8_I&feature=relmfu

 

 

[whostolemyhair]

Hi, the link to the video presentation at the dalman symposium isn't working. If you could repost the link it would be appreciated, I look forward to watching.

Thanks,

Lee

[Guest Carol T]

I recently saw the programme on BBC iPlayer as I really enjoy Michael Moseley's programmes, plus I'd been doing what turned out to be an 'intermittent fast' already for a few weeks (based on info from www.genesisuk.org - a site which aims to reduce the risk of cancer). I was very interested in the CR section especially as that seemed to be the link to longevity. Since watching that programme I've been researching different ways of eating, including incorporating superfoods and raw foods into my vegetarian diet. I've also ordered some samples of books from Amazon.co.uk and was very pleased when I came to this website to find that they are among your recommended books. I'm beginning to believe that I may actually be able to achieve a calorie restricted diet. My initial feeling was that I'm too greedy to be able to do it! I think the turning point for me was when the programme mentioned the BENEFITS of feeling hungry, which from scanning this website is something I find that you refer to here too.

 

I was also inspired by Joe Cordell looking so fit and well - not underweight or unhealthy in any way - and his reaction times, balance etc were impressive. I'd seen a programme many years ago that had investigated the links between a low calorie diet and longevity, and the guy in that programme did not exactly look in peak health.

 

I'm looking forward to finding out about eating in a more nutrient dense, calorie light way, and thank you for showing that it can be done in a variety of ways.

 

All the best with spreading the word.

 

Carol T (UK - where the programme was called 'Eat, Fast, and Live Longer').

[Guest DLR]

In the programme, there was a subtle statement that intermittent fasting resulted in more beneficial effects than CR. Is he right?

[Paul McGlothin]

I recently saw the programme on BBC iPlayer as I really enjoy Michael Moseley's programmes, plus I'd been doing what turned out to be an 'intermittent fast' already for a few weeks (based on info from www.genesisuk.org - a site which aims to reduce the risk of cancer). I was very interested in the CR section especially as that seemed to be the link to longevity. Since watching that programme I've been researching different ways of eating, including incorporating superfoods and raw foods into my vegetarian diet. I've also ordered some samples of books from Amazon.co.uk and was very pleased when I came to this website to find that they are among your recommended books. I'm beginning to believe that I may actually be able to achieve a calorie restricted diet. My initial feeling was that I'm too greedy to be able to do it! I think the turning point for me was when the programme mentioned the BENEFITS of feeling hungry, which from scanning this website is something I find that you refer to here too.

 

Thanks for commenting, Carol. Welcome to the CR Society! Hunger is something to welcome -- not be afraid of. if you are slightly hungry -- congratulate yourself -- your brain , heart and immune system will thank you , for they will all operate more effectively. And remember, you are not alone: Let's say that you are feeling a little hungry around 9 or 10 PM your time -- remember Meredith and I are already into our daily fast -- probably thousands of others are too. Imagine we are right there with you laughing and supporting you 100%. We are all joking about the old days when we filled ourselves full of food and felt worse because of it!

 

 

 

>I'm looking forward to finding out about eating in a more nutrient dense, calorie light way, and thank you for showing that it can be done in a variety of ways.

 

You are welcome good luck with CR.

 

Paul

[Paul McGlothin]

 

Hi, the link to the video presentation at the dalman symposium isn't working. If you could repost the link it would be appreciated, I look forward to watching.

Thanks,

Lee

 

Thanks for letting me know, Lee. Here is a PDF that will be helpful as background to the video:

 

Paul's Dalman Symposium Slides

 

 

Calorie Restriction Presentation- UCTV

 

You can always visit the CR Way channel on YouTube, if this doesn't work

 

 

Paul

[Paul McGlothin]

In the programme, there was a subtle statement that intermittent fasting resulted in more beneficial effects than CR. Is he right?

 

Chances are he is wrong, DLR. Here's a blog about the special. Scroll down to the part about comparing Intermittent fasting with a daily eating pattern:

 

CR and Intermittent fasting compared

 

Thank you for your question,

 

Paul

[Guest Alien]

There is a paper in AJCN showing the benefits of adding on IF to. VLCD

[Guest kaypeeoh]

I saw something on TV a few days ago. The speaker was British. He was demonstrating different styles of low calorie eating. It may have been the same guy. I just saw an ad for him on a new program demonstrating what looked like HIIT on a stationary bike. I think he's doing a series of shows concerning longevity and preventing cancer. He mentioned his father died of prostate cancer. My dad has it now.

 

kaypeeoh

[Guest kaypeeoh]

I saw something on TV a few days ago. The speaker was British. He was demonstrating different styles of low calorie eating. It may have been the same guy. I just saw an ad for him on a new program demonstrating what looked like HIIT on a stationary bike. I think he's doing a series of shows concerning longevity and preventing cancer. He mentioned his father died of prostate cancer. My dad has it now.

 

kaypeeoh

 

The show was on American TV again last night: Michael Mosley is doing a series of hour-long films on PBS. He looked at versions of CR and opted for 5 days normal feeding and 2 days of 600 calories each day. At the end of the hour he was noticeably thinner. Then his second show was about exercise. In that show it looked like he'd gotten the pot-belly back.

 

kaypeeoh

[Paul McGlothin]

The show was on American TV again last night: Michael Mosley is doing a series of hour-long films on PBS. He looked at versions of CR and opted for 5 days normal feeding and 2 days of 600 calories each day. At the end of the hour he was noticeably thinner. Then his second show was about exercise. In that show it looked like he'd gotten the pot-belly back.

 

kaypeeoh

 

Are you talking about the videos I posted earlier in this thread, kaypeeoh?

 

Paul

[Guest kaypeeoh]

Are you talking about the videos I posted earlier in this thread, kaypeeoh?

 

Paul

 

I don't think so but I can't get the videos to play on my laptop.

 

kpo

[Linda6214]

Hi Everyone,

I'd like to introduce myself. I am new to the CR Society as of today.  I am 49,  5"4 and feel best at 114, BMI of 19. I can consume 1000 calories a day and lose but only 1200 to maintain. Period. I exercise every day and I never adjust calorie intake based on exercise. It is already factored in for me. Staying trim takes more discipline each passing year it seems.   I  joined the CR Society today because I want to have the support of other like minded individuals with the same health focused goal where food consumption is concerned. My Dad died of Cancer and my Mother's side from Heart disease. I am wellness focused. I want to proactively decrease my risk factors by eating a nutritionally sound diet, 360 days of the year. (yes, 5 days of holiday or birthday cheating) I am a Whole Foods and Farmer's Market buyer to ensure organically fresh food products. 

 

I invite any member of this CR Society who wants to support and be supported with this personal healthy eating goal to reach out so we can do this together. It is NOT easy to make good food choices every meal of every day. We need to stick together. I am glad I found this organization. Please be in touch if you are interested in more of a one on one or group support process. 

Linda