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ОглавлениеHEALTH BENEFIT
Longevity—Enjoy A Longer, Better Life!
Caloric Restriction (CR)4 studies show that mammals who decrease their food intake by one third to one half can expect a 20%-30% longer life span. They also experience reduced cardiovascular risks and improved memory function.
Benefits Derived From CR Diets
CR in Primates—An ongoing study on rhesus macaques funded by The National Institute on Aging was initiated in 1989 at the University of Wisconsin. The 2009 results showed that caloric restriction in rhesus monkeys slowed down aging and significantly delayed the onset of age-related disorders such as cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and brain atrophy. Eighty percent of the calorie-restricted monkeys were still alive at the end of the experiment compared to only half of the controls5.
Lifespan
Seventy years ago C M McCay et al. discovered that reducing the number of calories fed to rodents nearly doubled their lifespan. The extensions varied between species but on average there was a 30–40% increase in lifespan in both mice and rats. Caloric restriction has also been shown to preserve a range of structural and functional parameters in aging rodents.6
Activity Levels
Laboratory rodents on a CR diet tend to exhibit increased activity levels at feeding times, particularly when provided with exercise equipment. In one study, animals on a conventional diet showed little activity by early middle age, while those on CR diet were observed to run around the cage and climb onto and hang from the wire tops throughout their lifespan. In fact, the longest surviving CR mouse was observed hanging from the top of his cage only three days before he became moribund.7 Monkeys on CR diets also appear more restless immediately before and after meals.8 This is because under a CR diet the subject still get hungry, unlike the pranic lifestyle where the subject is not dependent on physical nourishment.
Reduced DNA Damage
Calorie restriction reduces the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS)9 which causes different types of DNA damage such as the presence of 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG). These indicators are used to measure the level of oxidative damage in DNA. On CR diets, decreased 8-OHdG damage has been observed in the DNA of hearts, skeletal muscles, brains, livers and kidneys in mice. The levels of 8-OHdG in the organs of 15 month old mice was reduced to 81% of the levels in the DNA of mice on an unrestricted diet.10 In rats aged 24–26 months on a CR diet, the level of 8-OHdG in the organs was found to be on average 62% of the level in rats fed an unrestricted diet. In mice of the same age, the damage averaged 71% of the level in mice on an unrestricted diet.11 The scientific explanation is that the body knows how to minimize its energy expenditures, how to reuse, recycle and work more effectively and efficiently and how to use its resources more accurately, and genes alert the body when required.
Being breatharian tops caloric restriction because one’s body is preserved in a highly clean state at all times. It no longer has to deal with the daily struggle of pushing out toxins. Since there are significantly fewer toxins going into the body, it is easier to fight potential intruders such as viruses and negative bacteria. In short, the body has amazing cleansing powers when it is not preoccupied with the process of digestion. In ideal conditions, each cell works as its own power plant; it consumes energy, cleans itself and excretes the garbage. When we fast, one of the first things the body does is start detoxifying and ridding itself of excess dietary remnants.
Living longer does not have to mean humans have to grow old and become senile. We can continue to lead lives of vitality and good health. Breatharian bodies undergo less stress because energy is not wasted on digestion. This promotes stronger and more efficient use of the internal organs in everyday life. Imagine that for every week you spend on a caloric restricted lifestyle, you get to live an extra two days. How much is that worth to you?
To better understand longevity, compare the lifespan of your body to the mileage of a car. A car records mileage, just like the body has a certain lifespan. The car’s inner fuel and oil filters can be compared to the body’s internal organs—they also record mileage and can only last for so long. A car’s filters need to be replaced after a certain time but we have no easy method to replace internal organs when they start to deteriorate with age. This generally means that the more we use our filters, the dirtier they become and our ‘car’ will not run to its full potential and will not reach the longest mileage it is capable of.
Our bodies take in what they need from food and try to get rid of what they do not need. Due to contemporary changes in our eating habits and decreased availability of quality food, our bodies often do not know how to process or get rid of all the toxins we ingest on a daily basis. Diets based on convenience like processed foods, particularly with added sugar, overthrow the body’s natural alkaline balance.
This in turn creates the perfect acidic environment for disease. Furthermore, in the animal kingdom you will notice that humans are the only species on the planet who continue to eat during sickness. Look carefully at nature, look at your pets! When they feel sick, they don’t eat! Instead, they allow their bodies to clean themselves through fasting because it encourages healing. Our children have the same instincts, yet it is often with the encouragement of parents that they are taught to ignore this natural reflex. You may notice that when you feel sick, your appetite decreases.
Reduced Toxins
Research also indicates that diseases are usually derived from a build-up of toxins entering the body from modern human diets. Toxins can be small molecules, peptides or proteins capable of causing diseases on contact via the absorption by bodily tissues interacting with biological macromolecules such as enzymes or cellular receptors. Toxins vary greatly in severity.
To be completely free of toxins means you have a much stronger immune system. Most of the toxins that accumulate in the body come from our food in the way it is grown and/or processed. The quantity and quality of food we eat—too many ingredients, large portions, poor food combinations and environmental pollution—can create toxic chemical reactions in the gut. Even if you are eating the best, freshest organic produce, large portions strain the digestive system.
Analyzing data from three national surveys of 60,000 Americans, researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found that serving sizes have grown over the past 20 years. This occurs not only at fast-food outlets but also in restaurants and homes. The data reveals that over the past 20 years the size of hamburgers increased by 23%, a plate of Mexican food is 27% larger, soft drinks grew in size by 52% and snacks like potato chips, pretzels and crackers are 60% bigger.
Not surprisingly, the prevalence of adult obesity in the United States has increased from 14.5% in 1971 to 39.8% in 201612. The problem is that the more you're served, the more you eat. Most people could reduce their meal portion sizes by half and feel an improvement in vitality and energy levels within as little as a week. The problem is that many people are addicted to the sensation of feeling full and do not know when to stop eating before they hit this sensation.
Digesting large quantities of food also takes time and ironically, our digestive systems use a large percentage of the energy stored in the food itself for the digestion process. As already mentioned, when the time spent on digestion is reduced the body has more time to clean itself and recycle energy in a more efficient way.
Of all the food categories, the digestion of proteins is the most time consuming. It takes over three hours to break down and assimilate proteins. The reason for this is simple: protein molecules are long chains with well-soldered links and to break down their resistance requires the combination of good chewing and the simultaneous action of various gastric, pancreatic and biliary juices. This long process of calorie extraction taxes the system.
It has been calculated that to obtain 100 calories from a protein food, the system must use 30 calories. We can say that the specific dynamic action of proteins is 30 percent, while it is only 12 percent for fats and just 7 percent for carbohydrates.13 The ongoing cycle of the standard three meals per day means a lot of time is spent on digestion and many people need to rest after a meal to aid this process.
Almost all of us suffer from occasional constipation or a case of the runs—some more than others. Some of us eat too much too fast until we feel like we are about to explode and must stop. Poor food combinations contribute to discomfort in the stomach. When you take food out of the equation, you liberate yourself from this cycle of discomfort. Breatharians do not need this downtime after dinner or lunch since there is no dinner or lunch! There is simply an abundance of energy not disturbed by the digestion process. There are also no thoughts such as, Oh, it’s noon and I haven’t eaten yet. You are free to need nothing, free from meal times and free to spend your time as you wish.
Breatharians rely on prana—the purest and cleanest source of nourishment available on earth. In fact, it is the original source of life energy on earth. When we eat food, we technically eat prana in its secondary and third forms filtered through the plants and animals we consume.
My own blood tests taken before and after the pranic initiation process showed a significant and stable health improvement. Other breatharians who exit the process and take blood tests show similar improvements. This supports the claim that breatharians do not need to consider the nutritional balance of food or supplement their diets with expensive vitamins. The body gets everything it needs from prana.
Ideal Weight
This is perhaps the most important of all the health benefits which breatharians experience. When living from prana, the body is better able to adjust itself to its ideal weight. Achieving this perfect balance is far more difficult when an individual is distracted by food. I am currently carrying 10% body fat—a percentage that typically only athletes acquire. I am no athlete, although I like to keep in shape. A lower percentage of body fat is connected with a healthier body and ideal weight. In nature, the body of an animal becomes perfectly aligned to its individual needs.
In your mind’s eye, try to imagine an obese cheetah in the wild. It is a bizarre, nearly unimaginable image, is it not? Humans have beautiful gifts of self-consciousness and free will to use for better or for worse. Unfortunately, most of us get distracted by food and step out of the perfect balance that nature is able to provide for us.
Body Control
Temperature limits expand for breatharians. This means you can feel comfortable even in extreme hot or cold temperatures. You may also experience increased pain tolerance. In my personal life for example, I sometimes do not notice I am cold because I do not feel cold. I look at my arm and see that I have goose bumps. In hotter temperatures, I am more comfortable and sweat less.
Teeth, Skin and Body Odor
Absence of excess food consumption means no bacterial and food remnants are stored in the body. This also means less dental problems. In my experience, the breatharian process also solved various skin issues such as dandruff and acne. In many cases a person’s skin becomes smoother, softer and body odor is significantly reduced.
Feeling ‘Light’
Imagine feeling free, energetic and having a good mental attitude from eating well! Breatharians generally feel optimistic and full of energy because, without digestion to stress the body and muddle the mind, daily existence feels clean and pure. This becomes your new emotional baseline and is maintained throughout the day despite the problems or speed bumps life may throw at you. You feel lighter, refreshed and things go smoothly in a positive direction. It’s like the feeling after a workout or a good night’s sleep, only it stays with you!