When you stop eating, your blood pressure drops rapidly - but not because of fat loss.
Instead, plummeting insulin signals your kidneys to immediately flush out sodium and
water.
This rapid fluid loss is compounded as the body burns through its glycogen stores
(carbohydrates in the liver and muscles) for energy. Because glycogen binds to water at
a ratio of about three parts water to one part glycogen, depleting it releases significant
water weight. The combined diuresis reduces overall blood volume, which naturally
lowers the pressure against blood vessel walls.
Fasting also shifts the balance of the autonomic nervous system. It increases parasympathetic tone˙the "rest and digest" system˙and decreases sympathetic nerve
activity. This dual action slows the resting heart rate and relaxes blood vessels,
contributing to lower systolic and diastolic pressure.
Over the long term, intermittent fasting lowers blood pressure through secondary
metabolic improvements. Losing body fat, particularly visceral fat, reduces physical
resistance in the vascular system, meaning the heart does not have to pump as hard.
Fasting also improves insulin sensitivity and reduces systemic inflammation, which
allows endothelial cells in the blood vessels to produce more nitric oxide, a molecule that
helps vessels dilate.
The speed and scale of these changes can cause orthostatic hypotension˙a sudden
plunge in blood pressure when standing up, leading to dizziness or fainting. For people
with diagnosed hypertension who take blood pressure medication, the natural drop
caused by fasting combined with anti-hypertensive drugs can drive blood pressure to
dangerously low levels.
Full story:
https://www.quora.com/How-does-fasting-affect-blood-pressure
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