Body stages Also worth knowing Card 1 of 5
Explainer card
Autophagy
Fasting increases autophagy in mice after roughly 24 to 48 hours. In people, autophagy cannot yet be measured non-invasively, human muscle and blood-cell studies give mixed results, and no study has shown a specific hour at which it switches on.
Background reading, never a stage. The timer never shows it, and it is not tied to any hour of a fast. In the app it sits under the stages, in Also worth knowing.
Sources
- Mizushima 2004In vivo analysis of autophagy in response to nutrient starvation using transgenic mice expressing a fluorescent autophagosome marker. Mol Biol Cell, 2004.
- Chaudhary 2022Intermittent fasting activates markers of autophagy in mouse liver, but not muscle from mouse or humans. Nutrition, 2022.
What studies measured, not a reading of your own body. Stop and seek help if you feel unwell; the signs to stop for are listed under Stop signs on the safety page.
Evidence edition 1.0 · last updated · How this is written