Intermittent fasting and hormone levels

We’ve all heard about Intermittent Fasting, not just from Youtube and TikTok, but it has been written about in countless health and fitness magazines. Celebrities and sportspeople who exercise also seem to do it. So what exactly is it? It is a schedule for when you can eat call it a food window which is the only time you can eat. That means the rest of that day you fast until the next food window. There are schedules such as the 5:2 approach which involves eating regularly five days a week. For the other two days, you limit yourself to one 500–600 calorie meal. There are also 24, 36, 48 and 72-hour fasting periods but they can be dangerous and cause your body to store more fat because it has gone into starvation mode. So you can see how intermittent fasting is supposed to help you body burn fat, and been touted as the trendy way to lose weight.

Sounds good? Maybe, but some researchers at University of Illinois Chicago think it affects women’s hormones. Krista Varady, UIC professor of nutrition, led the study of pre- and post-menopausal obese women for eight weeks on the “warrior diet” method of intermittent fasting. This diet has a four hours per day food window after which only water until the next day.

The results from hormone level blood tests showed that levels of sex-binding globulin hormone, testosterone and androstenedione were not affected. But DHEA, the hormone that affects ovarian function and egg quality, was 14% lower in both pre-menopausal and post-menopausal women at the end of the trial. Varady said, “the drop in DHEA levels in post-menopausal women could be concerning because menopause already causes a dramatic drop in estrogen, and DHEA is a primary component of estrogen. However, a survey of the participants reported no negative side effects associated with low estrogen post-menopause, such as sexual dysfunction or skin changes.” The benefit of this drop is that high DHEA has been linked to breast cancer risk.

So it looks like the hype might be justified, but as with any strict exercise regime it is advisable to speak to your doctor first. But if you wish to bolster your results then don’t hesitate to try EvolveX, I’ll be waiting!