If you’ve been seeking natural methods to enhance human growth hormone levels, you may have come across the idea that fasting can be beneficial. Studies indicate that continuous fasting for 5 days can lead to a tenfold increase in HGH levels.
In essence, HGH rises during fasting due to its role as a stress hormone. It enables your body to utilize fat stores for energy, counteracting insulin’s effects and reducing the risk of hypoglycemia during fasting.
However, there’s a hook. Despite the potential HGH increase, fasting suppresses the anabolic effects of HGH.
This is because fasting reduces cell sensitivity to HGH and decreases its main anabolic mediator, Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1).
Consequently, the benefits of increased HGH on muscle mass and energy levels may not be experienced.
Moreover, the HGH increase is short-lived and may occur primarily in healthy individuals, not benefiting those with pituitary gland disorders like human growth hormone deficiency.
Understanding Intermittent Fasting
Intermittent fasting (IF) is an eating plan that alternates between periods of abstaining from food and designated eating times.
IF emphasizes the fasting periods, with variations in frequency and duration based on specific plans.
Popular approaches include:
5:2 Diets – These involve consuming only 500 to 600 calories on two non-consecutive days each week, while maintaining a regular diet on other days.
16:8 Plan – This method includes an eight-hour eating window, followed by a 16-hour fasting period. For instance, one might eat from 10 am to 6 pm and fast during the remaining hours.
Alternate Day Fasting – This form requires fasting every other day, which can be challenging to sustain in the long run.
24-Hour Fast – Practitioners abstain from food for a full 24-hour period, potentially on a monthly or weekly basis.
The Impact of Fasting on Human Growth Hormone
The level of growth hormone released during fasting seems to rise progressively with the duration of the fast. Given the safety of water fasting over dry fasting, it is theoretically considered a more effective strategy for enhancing HGH.
Fasting regimes that involve entire days of fasting may lead to a more significant increase in GH levels compared to less aggressive approaches like 16:8, especially when complete calorie restriction is implemented, rather than limiting intake to 500 calories.
For instance, studies indicate that a 16/8 restricted time feeding for 4 weeks resulted in no changes in average HGH levels.
Conversely, fasting completely for 48 hours was associated with a 5-fold increase in daily HGH levels, and a 10-fold increase was reported after a 5-day starvation period.
Intermittent fasting can also serve as an effective strategy for weight loss, contributing to long-term increases in HGH levels by reducing body fat in overweight and obese individuals.
Fasting and HGH: Mechanisms at Play
The precise mechanisms through which fasting stimulates HGH synthesis in the pituitary gland remain elusive. Scientists propose three potential mechanisms:
Reduced Negative Feedback due to Low Insulin Levels: Fasting leads to a drop in insulin levels, triggering GH release as a defense against hypoglycemia. Insulin typically acts as negative feedback for HGH synthesis, making its decrease during fasting a likely trigger.
Reduced Negative Feedback due to Low IGF-1 Levels: Fasting results in decreased IGF-1 levels, a known feedback mechanism for HGH synthesis. Despite this, fasting paradoxically reduces tissue sensitivity to growth hormone-induced IGF-1 synthesis, maintaining lower IGF-1 levels throughout the fast.
Increased Stimulus by Ghrelin: Elevated ghrelin levels (hunger hormone) during fasting may stimulate the pituitary gland to produce more HGH. However, studies suggest that changes in ghrelin levels don’t correspond precisely with observed changes in HGH levels during fasting.
Despite the apparent rise in HGH levels during fasting, the anabolic effects of growth hormone, crucial for muscle building, are diminished.
Additionally, fasting is pursued not only for weight loss and increased natural GH synthesis but also to induce autophagy—a cellular process linked to waste removal and component recycling.
However, the benefits of autophagy in humans remain unconfirmed, with research primarily conducted in animal trials. Fasting is one approach to accelerate autophagy, but researchers note that other forms of caloric restriction may be equally effective.
Human Growth Hormone Therapy and Fasting
Regrettably, fasting proves ineffective in raising HGH levels for individuals with growth hormone deficiency. Even when individuals undergo HGH injections during fasting, it doesn’t result in higher growth hormone levels compared to regular eating habits, although it may extend the duration of the effect.
Research indicates that people receiving HGH injections during fasting exhibit prolonged elevated HGH levels due to lower metabolic clearance. However, it’s crucial to note that this study involved healthy individuals with normal growth hormone secretion, not those with human growth hormone deficiency.
Since patients with human growth hormone deficiency in adults rely on medication for HGH levels, the impact of fasting on their natural growth hormone production is limited. Nevertheless, the practice of taking HGH injections while fasting appears safe, provided there are no contraindications, as previously mentioned.
It is advisable to seek guidance from a medical professional before embarking on any diet, including intermittent fasting, particularly if you have a chronic condition or are on prescription medications.
Conclusion
When we fast, the HGH production significantly increases. But there is a catch. Despite the fact that fasting may increase your growth hormone, it actually suppresses the anabolic effects of human growth hormone.
That’s because fasting lowers the sensitivity of your cells towards HGH, and decreases its main anabolic mediator called Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1).
Thus you will not experience the benefits of increased HGH on muscle mass, energy levels, etc. On top of that, the increase in HGH is short-lived and may occur only in healthy individuals.
People with diseases that affect the normal function of the pituitary gland such as human growth hormone deficiency cannot boost their HGH levels and reduce their symptoms with fasting.
If you aim to naturally elevate your HGH levels, consider incorporating the GenF20 Plus supplement into your routine.
