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Comment by nurettin | Hacker News Reader

What do you mean by water fasting? Do you avoid drinking water directly, or do you avoid all food? For example salads are basically sacks of water.

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Water fast is when the only intake is water (plus electrolites and vitamines). Basically "eat nothing".

> Basically "eat nothing".

Thanks for this, reading "water fast" and "3 days" gave me a shot of adrenaline. The "water" prefix is just confusing, the word for abstaining from food is just "fast" for those interested.

If this is engagement bait, then well played..

It is a specific type of fasting. Saying only "fasting" can mean a lot of things, saying "water fast" means you only drink water.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fasting

Fair enough, thanks for sharing

Water fasting is used to differentiate from dry fasting, where you don't even drink water.

Is this even a thing? Never assumed you'd ever want to dehydrate like this on purpose. Just why?

dry fasts aren't always what they appear. if you have significant glycogen stores in your body as you begin your fast you wont be dehydrated for the first day or two as water is freed. what usually happens is someone who starts glycogen endowed discovers that they aren't thirsty when they start fasting and tout it as dry fasting.

Ok glycogen store was the only possibilty I has in mind. Thanks:)

Religious Jews have a couple of 25 hour complete fasts per year.

Look up how Muslims fast during Ramadan.

What you thought of (not even drinking water) is called a dry fast. It is a thing, but for obvious reasons is much more intense and shorter in duration.

no you only consume water

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