Fasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time, The word id derived from the old English , ‘Feastan’ means to fast, observe. be strict. In Sanskrit ‘ Vrath’ means ‘determination’ and ‘Upavasa’ means ‘near to God’.A test may be total or partial concerning that from which one tests. and may be prolonged or intermittent as to the period of fasting. Fasting is an important treatment modality for health preservation. In fasting, mental preparedness is an essential pre- condition Prolonged fasting should be done only under the supervision of a competent Naturopath.
The duration of the fast depends upon the age of the patient, the nature of the disease and amount and type of drugs previously used. It is some times advisable to undertakes series of short fasts of two or three days and gradually increase the duration of each succeeding fast by a day or so. No harm will accure to fasting patient provided they take rest and are under proper professional care.
Methods of fasting are water, juices or raw vegetable juices, fruits. During tasting, the body burns up and excretes huge amounts of accumulated wastes. We can help this cleansing process by drinking alkaline juices. Sugars in juices will strengthen the heart, juice fasting is therefore the best form of testing. All juices should be prepared from fresh fruit immediately before drinking. Canned or frozen juices should not be A precautionary measure, which must be observed in all cases of testing, is the complete emptying of powers at the beginning of the fast by enema so that the patient is not bothered by gas or decomposing matter formed from the excrements remaining in the body. Enemas should be used at least every alternate day during the testing period. The total liquid intake should be approximately six to eight glasses. A lot of energy is spent during the fast in the process of eliminating accumulated poisons and toxic waste materials . it is therefore of utmost importance that the patient gets as much physical rest and mental relaxation as possible during the fast.
The success of the fast depends largely on how it is broken. The main rules for break in the fast are do not over eat, eat slowly and chew your food thoroughly and take several days for the gradual change to the normal diet. During fasting, Sexual intercourse is forbidden. Talking is restricted to meet the essential needs.