It's originally built into humans to help them where they had nothing to eat, but in 2017, specially in the western world, people use it unknowingly to abstain from eating, and not because they have literally nothing to eat like our hunter-gatherer ancestors did. So it serves the exact same purpose but in a different capacity these days for most.
There was a documentary that I watched were a man fasted only for 2 days. Both days he only consumed one small meal at the same time on each separate day. The results were amazing in terms of how much weight the guy lost who was doing the experiment. He showed the waistline of his jeans and demonstrated how they usually fit compared to how much space was now in between his trousers and waist. It was dramatic. Weight loss gone wild! It was actually quite shocking to see.
His thoughts on doing this were that generally, it was very tough to begin with, but after a while it did get easier throughout the day. However, he did say that it was much harder to resist food on the second day. I believe this was made harder because he met up with some friends on the second day and they had some food in a pub, and him fasting, sat and watched them eat. However, I have tried a two day fast and can attest that I found it extremely difficult on the second day too.
And I wasn't sitting in a pub watching people tuck into a hearty pub meal. I think it's because on the second day the body is running on extreme empty, but on the first day there is still more food in the system from previously eating normally. I'll be totally honest here, I did not succeed on the second day. I gave up and had something to eat earlier than I was supposed to. I know, I'm a joke! Ah well, I was doing it as an experiment anyway, as I'm not overweight.
Of course, the issue with short term fasting is that once the person stops fasting there is a big chance of them making up for lost calories, and falling straight back into their old habits. This is where discipline comes in. You have to be committed to keep the weight off. One other good thing about fasting is that it shrinks the stomach, making you feel full much quicker. But this is temporary, and can't be relied upon over the long term to help you keep the portions small.
Fasting, while not for everyone, such as people who are diabetic, is very good for the mind and body. It doesn't have to be for prolonged periods of time to be effective. Even just doing it one day a week can be effective if you don't make up for lost food / time and gorge yourself on the other days. Give it a go!
