Did you know you could be on the fast track to a sharper mind? How, you may ask? Intermittent fasting. Intermittent fasting (IF) is not just the idea of not eating for hours on end, there is some science to it. Intermittent fasting has three variants, namely: time-restricted eating (TRE), alternate day fasting (ADF), and periodic fasting (PF). Now, let’s break these down. TRE is characterized by a time window of food intake that only lasts 8 hours per day; ADF is characterized as alternating between eating regularly on one day and restrain from eating the next; PF is characterized by cycles of abstinence or strong limitation of food for two days a week with no restrictions for the remaining five days of the week.
Now, what these variants of IF all have in common is when it is sustained long enough, a process called “the metabolic switch” or “G-to-K switch” occurs. This transition occurs 12-36 hours after the fasting period begins and initiates the transition of using carbohydrates and glucose to fatty acids and ketones as the major cellular fuel source. The decreased availability of glucose and increase ketone levels (specifically B-hydroxybutyrate) can upregulate the expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) which in result, promotes mitochondrial biogenesis, synaptic plasticity, and cellular stress resistance. So, why should we care about this switch?
This switch has revealed remarkably complex and coordinated adaptation of the brain and body that have enabled an individual to maintain and even enhance their cognitive and physical performance for extended periods of time. Intermittent fasting leads to lower levels of circulating insulin in the bloodstream, which enhances neuroplasticity and protection against metabolic and oxidative stress. It has been shown that IF enhances a little something we like to call long-term potentiation (LTP) at hippocampal synapses. This LTP strengthens the synaptic connections between neurons and plays a key mechanism for learning and memory. So, with finals coming up, perhaps you should give intermittent fasting a chance because we love LTP.
Gudden, J., Arias Vasquez, A., & Bloemendaal, M. (2021). The Effects of Intermittent Fasting on Brain and Cognitive Function. Nutrients, 13(9), 3166. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13093166
Mattson, M. P., Moehl, K., Ghena, N., Schmaedick, M., & Cheng, A. (2018). Intermittent metabolic switching, neuroplasticity and brain health. Nature reviews. Neuroscience, 19(2), 63–80. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn.2017.156
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