Part 2 – Weight loss, Exercise and Intermittent Fasting

In the last blog, I talked about fighting disease using diet and weight loss. In particular, I talked about fighting cancer. That was only two of the pieces to fighting cancer. It is also important to include exercise (especially when using a Keto diet as an adjunct for cancer treatment or weight loss) and intermittent fasting. 

Exercise is linked to the immune system. Recent research suggests that cytotoxic T cells (white blood cells that specialize in killing cancer cells) are activated with exercise and improve their ability to attack cancer cells. Regular exercise has an important role in almost every disease.  

In the Keto diet, it is really important to avoid saturated fats as much as possible and include things like fatty fish, olive oil, avocado oil and coconut oils. Lean proteins such as chicken and some cuts of pork are great choices. To offset the “bad cholesterol”, as when you are eating too much bacon, cheese and red meats, you need to exercise. Exercise does not have to be running 10 miles or going to the gym 3 times a day. It has been shown that with brisk walking for 30 minutes every day you can achieve the same benefits as running for 30 minutes per day and increase your “good cholesterol”. 

Exercise takes on many forms, not just the cross-trainer or even walking. I work in my garden and can burn more calories and perhaps have the same benefits as walking daily. As long as you are moving and you feel that you are a bit more challenged, you are getting exercise. 

So what are the overall benefits of exercise? According to many health authorities and MedlinePlus:

Regular exercise and physical activity may: 

• Help you control your weight. Along with diet, exercise plays an important role in controlling your weight and preventing obesity. To maintain your weight, the calories you eat and drink must equal the energy you burn. To lose weight, you must use more calories than you eat and drink.
• Reduce your risk of heart disease. Exercise strengthens your heart and improves your circulation. The increased blood flow raises the oxygen levels in your body. This helps lower your risk of heart diseases such as high cholesterol, coronary artery disease, and heart attack. Regular exercise can also lower your blood pressure and triglyceride levels.
• Help your body manage blood sugar and insulin levels. Exercise can lower your blood sugar level and help your insulin work better. This can cut down your risk for metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes. And if you already have one of those diseases, exercise can help you to manage it. 
• Help you quit smoking. Exercise may make it easier to quit smoking by reducing your cravings and withdrawal symptoms. It can also help limit the weight you might gain when you stop smoking.  
• Improve your mental health and mood. During exercise, your body releases chemicals that can improve your mood and make you feel more relaxed. This can help you deal with stress and reduce your risk of depression. 
• Help keep your thinking, learning, and judgment skills sharp as you age. Exercise stimulates your body to release proteins and other chemicals that improve the structure and function of your brain.  
• Strengthen your bones and muscles. Regular exercise can help kids and teens build strong bones. Later in life, it can also slow the loss of bone density that comes with age. Doing muscle-strengthening activities can help you increase or maintain your muscle mass and strength. 
• Reduce your risk of some cancers, including colon, breast, uterine, and lung cancer. 
• Reduce your risk of falls. For older adults, research shows that doing balance and muscle-strengthening activities in addition to moderate-intensity aerobic activity can help reduce your risk of falling.
• Improve your sleep. Exercise can help you to fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer.
• Improve your sexual health. Regular exercise may lower the risk of erectile dysfunction (ED) in men. For those who already have ED, exercise may help improve their sexual function. In women, exercise may increase sexual arousal.
• Increase your chances of living longer. Studies show that physical activity can reduce your risk of dying early from the leading causes of death, like heart disease and some cancers.

Regular exercise is supported by the World Health Organization which states:

In adults and older adults, higher levels of physical activity improve:

• risk of all-cause mortality
• risk of cardiovascular disease mortality
• incidence of hypertension
• incidence of site-specific cancers (bladder, breast, colon, endometrial, esophageal adenocarcinoma, gastric and renal cancers)
• incidence of type-2 diabetes
• prevents of falls 
• mental health (reduced symptoms of anxiety and depression)
• cognitive health
• sleep
• measures of adiposity may also improve 

They also state that “More than 80% of the world’s adolescent population is insufficiently physically active”. This fact is truly concerning. Growing up, my parents would always say, “Go outside and play”. I never saw junk foods in the house and only rarely had a “treat” like a fast food burger. More and more children are provided with sedentary games and a diet that will promote disease. The issues of health decline can begin in childhood.

Weight loss occurs when you spend more calories than you take in. It is a well-known concept. 

We are choosing the Keto diet currently due to research that suggests it as an adjunct therapy hopefully making cancer cells more susceptible to the treatment. By limiting glucose and weight loss (in overweight people), we are hopeful, that once the cancer is near remission we can move to a more healthy plant-based diet that will provide the immune support to keep the cancer from returning. It is a process. 

At first, my sister was reluctant to walk every day due to her osteoarthritis. It was just too painful, however as her weight decreased, so did her complaints of pain. Hopefully, now that the weather is cooler in the “sunshine” state we can get out daily. I can’t express how important exercise is to your daily routine no matter what disease you have. Our bodies were never designed to just sit. Clinically, my patients who did the worst were the patients who refused to move and follow their doctor’s advice regarding their diet and medications.

There are 10 types of fitness (aka exercise achievements according to Crossfit). 

• Cardiovascular/respiratory endurance – The ability of the body’s systems to gather, process, and deliver oxygen
• Stamina – The ability of body systems to process, deliver, store, and utilize energy
• Strength – The ability of a muscular unit, or combination of muscular units, to apply force
• Flexibility – the ability to maximize the range of motion at a given joint
• Power – The ability of a muscular unit, or combination of muscular units, to apply maximum force in minimum time
• Speed – The ability to minimize the cycle time of a repeated movement
• Coordination – The ability to combine several distinct movement patterns into a singular distinct movement
• Agility – The ability to minimize transition time from one movement pattern to another
• Balance – The ability to control the placement of the body’s center of gravity about its support base
• Accuracy – The ability to control movement in a given direction or at a given intensity

All of which have their unique health benefits.  Someone 90 years old might not benefit from stamina but most certainly could benefit from flexibility, coordination and balance. Each person can find themselves in a different situation depending on where they are with their personal goals, age, or disease state. Again, it is so important to work closely with your primary care physician to make sure the choice you make is best suited for your personal goal and is safe to begin. As for right now, my sister and I are focused on walking. She has also incorporated the stationary bike to build up her endurance.

Just know that whatever you end up incorporating,  it will be the right diet, the right exercise and the right weight loss for you. 

I also wanted to talk about fasting and gut health. I know these are things that are misunderstood. 

Fasting does not mean that you don’t eat for days or weeks. I like to call it “intermittent fasting” which just means we are on an eating schedule. For instance, I rarely eat after 3 pm as I have an issue with reflux. I will get such bad heartburn in the middle of the night that it wakes me from sleep. I just stopped eating after 3 pm and the heartburn resolved. I usually did not eat before 8 am just because of my work schedule. I was practicing “intermittent fasting”. No food between 3 pm and 8 am. That means I fasted for 17 hours. I was not even aware I was doing it. 

Our bodies “talk” to us all the time and tell us quietly what it needs. For me, there was no food during those hours. However, some people can not hear their body’s voice and they eat late into the night and end up taking antacids. They get up the next day, just to have the process start all over again. These people need to make a conscious effort to establish what their eating habits will be.  

What are the benefits of intermittent fasting?

Recent research has found that using intermittent fasting for weight loss may have benefits. Fasting for a short time can produce ketosis, so it breaks down stored fat instead, which can support a ketogenic diet during cancer treatment. 

Changes in the function of hormones, cells, and genes:

• Insulin level: Your blood level of insulin drops, which promotes fat burning.
• Human growth hormone (HGH) level: Your blood level of HGH may increase. Higher levels of this hormone promote fat-burning and muscle gain.
• Short-term fasting actually can improve your metabolism, helping you burn even more calories.
• Cellular repair: Your body begins critical cellular repair processes (autophagy), such as removing waste material from cells. This Increased process might protect against several diseases, including cancer and neurodegenerative diseases (such as Alzheimer’s disease).
• Gene expression: Beneficial changes occur in several genes and molecules related to longevity and protection against disease
• Oxidative stress is one factor that can contribute to aging and many chronic diseases. These are unstable molecules called “free radicals”, which react with other important molecules, such as protein and DNA, and damage them. Reduction in oxidative stress can also be brain protective (reduction in oxidative stress, insulin resistance and inflammation).
• Intermittent fasting has been shown to have major benefits for insulin resistance (metabolic syndrome) and to lead to a reduction in blood sugar levels.

Has also been shown to improve several risk factors for heart disease, including:

• blood pressure
• blood triglycerides
• total and LDL (bad) cholesterol
• inflammatory marker

All and all, I really can’t find any good reason not to fast. It just seems like there are far too many benefits to ignore and it is easy to do.

So even if you don’t have cancer, research is showing that regular exercise reduces the risk of endometrial, esophageal, liver, pancreas and breast cancer while helping to maintain a healthy weight. Again, obesity, or even being overweight can lead to a disease, which can be prevented. 

There is a study that showed tumor shrinkage in a group that did 150 minutes of aerobic exercise, plus two sessions of strength training (usually weights) weekly for 5 months. They had at least 4 rounds of chemotherapy and positive tumor response was greater than those who did not exercise. 

My sister never incorporated these principles and never thought she would ever get cancer. I think the take-home point is “Why not me?” Cancer and disease are just looking for an opportunity. If you give it enough opportunity, then you should not be surprised. I am in the same boat as everyone else, I have not lived my life perfectly. I have eaten my fair share of processed foods, I have gained and lost weight, I have exercised intermittently, I am not better than anyone else out there – but I hope to provide the education needed to make good choices.  I feel that proper education hasn’t been there for you.

I am so grateful to be able to share my sister’s journey and my journey in health care. I am here to share the information I have acquired and stories from my patients that have made me a better and more compassionate nurse.  And a better person. 

Please continue to read and learn as I move through many health disorders. This is truly your site and, hopefully, your comments and emails will lead me to address your personal questions when surviving disease.