WHAT IS AUTOPHAGY

There are many ways in which a body can be detoxified of its accumulated toxins and from detoxifying foods and chemical and detox (natural) agents.

‘Autophagy’ means ‘self-eating’ and refers to the way of which your body cleans out the various unwanted toxins and recycles the damaged components of the cell.

 

EXERCISE CAN BOOST AUTOPHAGY

Yes, exercise can boost autophagy as it occurs in response to stress. Like autophagy, exercise also helps in flushing out the unwanted toxins from your body through sweating and which is just as helpful as any detox program. In fact, there are many who consider exercise as the foundation of effective detoxification.

 

HOW MUCH EXERCISE CAN OPTIMISE AUTOPHAGY

The amount of exercise that is needed to optimise autophagy is still unknown, though many have pointed towards the direction of intense exercise as compared to mild exercise.

 

AUTOPHAGY CAN ALSO BE RADICALLY INHIBITED

The quick way to shut down autophagy is to consume protein in large amounts which will stimulate IGF – 1 and mTOR (potent inhibitors of autophagy).

Because of this, it is best that the intake of protein should be limited to just about 40 to 70 grams per day by depending on your mass of the body. Proteins can be found in meat, eggs, fish, dairy products etc, to name a few. Vegetables like broccoli, are also rich in proteins.

If you are not sure as to whether you are getting required too much protein or not, then, it is recommended that you calculate the requirement of your body which is based on your lean body mass along with writing down everything that you have eaten for a few days. Then, simply you are required to calculate the daily protein’s amount that you have consumed from all the sources.

 

INTERMITTENT FASTING CAN ALSO BOOST AUTOPHAGY

Fasting is also known to boost autophagy as it is another biological stressor and produces beneficial results. It is also known to lead to a reduced chance of risk of diabetes and heart disease.

There are various kinds of intermittent fasting routines and if by any chance, you are resistant to insulin, then it is best recommended that you should fast every day by scheduling your eating within a span of eight hours or less.

There is also another way of boosting autophagy and that is by nutritional ketosis and to achieve that, you have to increase the amount of healthy fat in your diet by cutting down on the non-fiber carbs along with a moderate amount of protein.

But harmful fats like oils (vegetable; processed) needs to be avoided as it is rich in omega-6 oils and it will lead excess omega-6 fats to integrate into the membrane of inner mitochondria and will become susceptible to damage (oxidative) and will prompt the mitochondria to die a premature death.

 

THE MESSAGE

No matter what the results and the studies show, it is up to you and your lifestyle, which determines your fate in terms of how long you will live and how healthy will those years be; and it goes without any saying that for the optimal health and the prevention of disease, you will be needing healthy mitochondria plus efficient autophagy and need to keep in mind these three factors –

  • By keeping an eye on your dietary style
  • By keeping an eye on what you eat
  • By performing exercise

Consult with a specialist before adopting any strategy and get the proper guidance to develop a nutritional plan that works as a lifestyle for you! And more important, enjoy the process.

 

 

Marcelo

Marcelo is the co-founder and Director of Exercise Physiology at Intense Health, Perth's #1 Private Strength Training and Nutrition Clinics.
Marcelo

Marcelo

Marcelo is the co-founder and Director of Exercise Physiology at Intense Health, Perth's #1 Private Strength Training and Nutrition Clinics.