Fast: 1. To abstain from food. 2. To eat very little or abstain from certain foods, especially as a religious discipline.

Through the creation of this blog alone, it is a well-known fact that Jews love their food. A celebration doesn’t exist without food. It’s true that wine holds some importance, but food seems to steal the spotlight. There are however, a few days during the year where we abstain from all food and drink. In Christianity, there is such thing as a “partial fast” – Lenten, commemorating the fast of J.C in the desert, where meat and dairy are prohibited. In Islam, the 30 day fast known as Ramadan bans all food and drink every day until sundown. Judaism and fasting sit somewhere in between the two religions. We have 7 fast days during the year – 5 minor, and 2 major. There are a whole bunch of reasons for fasting, but considering it is Yom Kippur in a few days here is a little bit of a historical, or shall we say, biblical, background to the holiest day of the year..

A little bit of history...

As is quoted in Leviticus 23:27, on the 10th day of the month of Tishrei, "You should do no work throughout that day. For it is a Day of Atonement ("Yom Kippurim") on which expiation is made on your behalf before the Lord your God.  Indeed, any person who does not practice self-denial throughout that day shall be cut off from his people..”

Great, now that we have the biblical reference, here’s a little bit of an explanation of Yom Kippur (the lite version).

The translation of the word “Yom Kippur” literally means a Day of Atonement. For many Jews – it’s probably the most important day of the Jewish year. Even those who don’t observe any other customs or holidays, will fast and refrain from any work. The reason we call it a Day of Atonement (classic Biblical term) is because it’s set aside for us to atone for all our sins we have done in the past year. The new year begins with Rosh Hashana, a 2 day Holiday where we pray for a sweet year ahead. Ten days later, comes along this awe-some day of Yom Kippur – our fate is finally sealed. No going back. That’s it. C’est ca. G-d makes his decision, and we can’t do anything about it. So Yom Kippur becomes our last chance to change the destiny of our upcoming year.

It’s quite common, that in the days leading up to Yom Kippur people ask each other for forgiveness for anything they have done. There’s also the somewhat barbaric custom of Kapparot where we swing chickens around our head, asking the Big Man up in the Sky to exchange the chickens life instead of our own. A lot of people feel that swinging chickens around is a little outlandish and tend to use money or fish instead. Understandably so..

In addition to refraining from all food and drink there’s a few more prohibitions, of one them being banned from wearing leather shoes – you’ll often spot the Jews walking around in canvas shoes on Yom Kippur, pulled out once a year for the occasion. 

A Spot of Nutrition...

A lot of people seem to like the notion of fasting for a day. They feel it’s cleansing, or a detox – especially in the case of a fast like Tzom Gedliyah, one day post Rosh Hashana where we have been stuffing our stomachs with food beyond their capacities. It’s evident that there is some sort of spiritual benefit to fasting, but is there any physical benefit to fasting?

Apparently there are! Certain people fast on a weekly basis to help with longevity, as depriving our body of food for a day, or short amount of time, slows down the “clocks” inside our cells that trigger ageing, and as a result keeps our organs youthful. There are also theories that suggest short fasts (20-36 hours) can reduce risks of some diseases such as heart disease and diabetes, and that they can improve insulin sensitivity. In English, this means your cells are more sensitive and do a better job of keeping your blood sugar levels stable after eating.

At the same time, starving your body of food makes it really difficult to make intellectual decisions about what to eat, as your body craves instant energy – usually in the form of cakes, chocolate, biscuits or anything high in sugar.

Now here is a bit of science about what happens to our body when we fast. A fast technically occurs after 12 hours of not eating, when the body uses the carbohydrate and fat stores as energy. Once the body starts to use protein stores – this would be considered starvation, rather than fasting (which is what happens in the case of someone with anorexia or untreated diabetes). In other words – any benefits that come along with fasting, definitely do not come along with starvation.

Many advocates of fasting claim that because there is no food entering the body, the body is able to undergo detoxification and break down fat stores. It has no choice – there is nothing else coming in. When the body breaks down this fat, there are other chemicals stored along with the fat released that are also eliminated through this process. Pretty cool? The other benefit that comes along with fasting is some sort of a healing process. Instead of energy going toward the digestive system to digest the food we eat, it goes toward the metabolism and the immune system. The body is also better at repairing any damaged cells. Think of a time when you were sick or physically hurt – you usually lose your appetite because your body is using its energy to fix itself rather than eat and digest.

Despite these proposed benefits, there continues to be many doctors that deny these points and claim that fasting is actually detrimental. When it comes to anything on nutrition – there will always be controversy.