(Image source from: How Navratra fast affects your health?})

Is "Navratra" fast your way of losing some extra pounds quickly? If yes, then reading this piece will leave you enlightened on a few important facts.During the 9-day Navratra fast, while some abstain from regular food, there are others who expeditiously diet on fruits and water only to bump off those extra kilos. But is your way of fasting the right away to shed those flabs? Let's find out.

While there are few who opt for milk and fruit diet, there are some who only survice on water for those nine days. Now the big question is how much fasting is too much for your health during those nine days?

The stringent diets that people  opt for during Navratri have their own pitfalls. Jaspreet Kaur, a dietitian based in Patel Nagar, says, "Following extreme forms of food habits during Navratri has adverse effects on the body. Since one loses out on essential carbohydrates when one is on a fruits-only or milk-only diet, the person becomes cranky. And although it might feel that abstinence will help you lose weight, you actually end up taking more calories."

The vrat food that is available during Navratri, says Kaur, is packed with a lot more calories than is visible to the eye. "People who wish to lose weight by fasting during Navratri, should know that their bodies do not work the way they'd want them to. According to the newest research in the field, one should eat in moderate quantities, after every two-three hours. Even if you're observing the fasts, I'd suggest keep snacking on light food."

Dr Simran Saini, a nutritionist based in west Delhi, too, slams these food habits that people follow during Navratri. "These diets are very harmful. One should not totally depend on fruits or milk during the days when they observe fast. Such diets are not advisable at all. The whole point of a fast is nullified when one doesn't have enough carbohydrates."

AW: Suchorita Dutta Choudhury