Here’s the Scientific Reason Behind Fasting Which Your Mum Didn’t Tell You About

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Dear God, let’s have a deal. I will not have food today and in return, you got to grant my wishes. Many of us might have done it at some point of our life. But, do we really know the origin of fasting?

Fasting is considered as a tradition in most religions and cultures. It has become a ritual in Christianity and Judaism and has become the fourth of the five pillars of Islam. Lord Buddha also attributed his good health by preaching his followers not to eat the evening meal.

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In Hinduism, fasting demonstrates the denial of physical needs of the body for the sake of spiritual gains. It is done on the occasion of certain festivals and Ekadashis (11th day which occurs twice in a lunar month). As per scriptures, Ekadashi has an inter-relationship with the state of mind. On this day, our mind can concentrate much better as compared to other days and thus, meditation is advised in order to have a spiritual connect.

Fasting means ‘Upavaasa’ in Sanskrit. The translation is Upa which means near and Vaasa which means to stay. So, the spiritual meaning translates into staying near to God. It is not just the spiritual gains that make fasting an important tradition. The science behind fasting is explained by Ayurveda.

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The Science behind fasting

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The irregular eating habits due to a fast lifestyle cause imbalance to our digestive fire calledAgni. Also, improperly cooked food leads to the creation of body toxins called Ama. And according to Ayurveda, an imbalanced Agni and the accumulated Ama in our digestive system leads to many diseases.

Just like any other system, even the digestive system needs some rest. Fasting gives this much-needed rest to the digestive system and tries to maintain a balance between Agni and Ama.

So, the next time you keep a fast, think of the scientific benefits as well.