Skipping a meal: Facts and Myths

Routinely skipping breakfast may be troublesome for both men and women in a number of ways. A study has shown that skipping breakfast regularly may increase, by as much as 20%, the risk of problems like Type II Diabetes, insulin resistance and even heart disease.

Many believe that frequent fasting leads our bodies to start burning muscle and use it as fuel. Though research has proved that this may happen during unregulated dieting, intermittent fasting almost never leads to muscle burning. On the contrary, some studies have even suggested that it is better for maintenance of muscle mass.

Often, after fasting, you may be inclined to eat a little extra during the next meal in order to compensate the lost calories during the previous skipped meal. However, when considered on an overall basis, it actually results in a lower calorie intake than what you would probably have had normally, even in a span as small as two days.

Many arguments suggest that intermittent fasting can force your body to go into what is known as 'starvation mode', which leads to a slower metabolic rate and thus, lesser fat-burning. On the contrary however, quite the reverse happens. Short-term fasting can actually increase metabolic rate, due to an increase in the levels of nor-epinephrine or nor-adrenaline, which stimulates breaking down of body fat by the fat cells.