For Christians, Lent is traditionally a time of fasting, abstinence, prayer and alms-giving. Although I grew up in a Christian family, it was also one with health problems that were considered exemptions from the obligation to fast. It is only now in middle age that I am considering taking up the practice this Lent for the first time.

As someone who is an absolute novice to fasting from food, I was surprised at what I found out about the subject on the Internet.

In an article entitled “What to expect on your first fast”, Ralph Cinque states:

“Many thousands of people have restored their health through fasting. Some, ill and distraught from years of discomfort and discouragement, try fasting as a last resort.  Fasting to heal oneself can mean the difference between living life pain-ridden and dependent on drugs, going from one doctor to another for relief and living a normal, pain-free existence into old age.”

This is certainly in keeping with the words of the 15th century physician and alchemist Paracelsus, who said that “Fasting is the greatest remedy – the physician within.”

Encouraged by this, I decided to find out more.

According to the American Natural Hygiene Society, one of its founders, Dr. Herbert Shelton (1895-1985), who supervised more than 40,000 fasts, used to say that “the most vehement objections to fasting are made by those who have never missed a meal in their lives.”

He was obviously talking about me and my family.

A Website called All about Fasting goes even further in its praise of the practice: “Fasting has been called the “miracle cure” because the list of physical conditions improved by fasting is long and varied. Because fasting initiates the body’s own healing mechanisms, any ailment may show improvement.”

Apparently during fasting we rest our system from the constant onslaught of food stuffs, freeing up the energy used in digestion to be used for healing and recuperation.

An obvious benefit of fasting for many people is losing weight. However there are many more positive effects.

The All about Fasting website also says, “Fasting will change your tastes toward more natural and wholesome foods. It will also give you a new perspective on your relationship to food; why and when you eat what you do, what your mental and emotional attachments are, and offer an opportunity for you to heal these issues.”

It continues, “When you’ve progressed past the stage of dealing with detox symptoms, a fast will have you feeling lighter, more energetic, more enthusiastic, and requiring less sleep.”

It goes on to talk about the emotional and spiritual benefits: “You will feel calmer, clearer and happier. Fasters often report that depression lifts, goals begin to feel more obtainable as obstacles are put into proper focus. Doctors have reported patients experiencing improved concentration, less anxiety, sleeping better and waking more refreshed.”

Ron Lagerquist says in his article, “Fasting and Addiction” that fasting is effective, “due to its ability to strip away the props we have become so dependent on to get us through the day. What remain are the spiritual resources within.  If they are bankrupt, then during fasting you will come face to face with a profound emptiness.” He says that it is this emptiness that people try to escape from with their addictions.

He defines addiction as anything that controls us, and limits our independence and freedom. He explains that the strongest attachment is to the things we turn to when feeling lonely and depressed. Fasting and self-denial challenge and attempt to break these addictions.  It follows therefore, that we should fast during Lent, from the things that we are most attached to. It is clearly meaningless to give up chocolate for Lent, for example, if chocolate is something that we can quite happily live without.

However, an easier fast from certain foods is good practice for us. As Terry Modica writes in her Good News Daily Reflections: “Fasting during Lent,… saying no to eating foods that we desire, we grow stronger in the self-discipline that enables us to say no to more difficult temptations.”

Interestingly, it is precisely when we are feeling hungry and our blood sugar levels are low, that we are most likely to feel depressed, and want to have a snack or drink, or whatever our “drug” is. This may well be the origin of the “Sherry hour” or cocktails before dinner.

One way of conquering an addiction is to replace the “drug” with a healthier alternative. So when the evening blues hit us, instead of having “a bottle of beer and a packet of crisps,” it would be preferable to have a snack of salad or fruit and a glass of water. Taking some exercise, fresh air and creative activity is also helpful for our state of mind at this point. Gardening can be a great pre-dinner activity as it encompasses all of these at the same time.

Self-denial is also good for us in that it can prepare us to accept suffering. It is suffering in a controlled environment, which considering that we cannot entirely avoid suffering, is good practice for us for when suffering comes our way unexpectedly.

Frances Hogan says in her book Suffering, the Unwanted Blessing that suffering is a signal for us to take care of our needs, whether physical, emotional or spiritual. She adds that when we have spiritual needs, we sometimes try to satisfy them with physical means, but unless treated with the proper remedy, the need remains. “It’s a gnawing dissatisfaction at gut level that will not go away unless soul food and soul medicine are given,” she says.

She concludes, “Since we cannot escape the experience of sorrow and suffering, it is wise to learn how to benefit from it and put it to good use.” Likewise, it would be wise to learn how to benefit from fasting and put it to good use, which is why I am going to put down this packet of crisps and start fasting from today.