Maybe you already limit your own food intake to a narrow window of six to eight hours a day. Or maybe you go without food for a full 24 hours a few days a week. If you don’t, chances are more than a few of your colleagues do.

A growing body of research suggests that intermittent fasting has numerous health benefits. But how does a fasting diet affect your performance at work?

“From an evolutionary perspective, your mind works best when you fast,” says Dr. Mark Mattson, author of The revolution of intermittent fasting and professor of neuroscience at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. “If you’re an animal in the wild that hasn’t had food for a few days, your brain and body should be functioning optimally, or you’re not going to survive.”

How does intermittent fasting work for those of us trying to survive the competitive wilderness of the urban jungle?

Is intermittent fasting healthy?

Many people attribute weight loss to intermittent fasting. Some research suggests it may prevent cancer, dementia, heart disease, and diabetes—and even help slow the aging process overall.

Underlying all of these benefits may be increased insulin sensitivity and reduced inflammation. When you fast, your body responds better to insulin, the hormone that regulates blood sugar. With better overall blood sugar control and less circulating sugar to burn, the body resorts to burning fat instead.

Better blood sugar control and less body fat may lead to less overall inflammation, which appears to play a role in many age-related diseases.

How quickly do the effects of intermittent fasting occur?

Trying to prevent dementia, which may not affect you for decades, might be reason enough to re-plan your meal times, but could intermittent fasting give you an advantage beforehand?

There aren’t many studies on the more immediate effects of fasting on human brain performance. However, animal studies show many examples of the benefits.

Studies in mice show that within a few weeks of switching to the new schedule, levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) increased. This brain molecule plays a role in learning, remembering, and forming new connections in the brain. BDNF also keeps depression and anxiety at bay.

“Once the animals get used to intermittent fasting, their anxiety levels drop, allowing them to concentrate better. We then observe how learning ability and memory improve,” says Mattson.

Better learning and memory on an empty stomach may sound counterintuitive. Many people would say they just can’t think clearly on an empty stomach. It hardly seems conducive to staying on top of things at the office. But these feelings are fleeting.

“You just have to get used to it,” says Mattson. “It’s like exercise: If you haven’t trained and you start running, you’re not going to feel good at first. It takes a few weeks to a month for your body to get used to it.”

Once your body is forced to burn fat instead of sugar for energy, the fog should lift as your concentration becomes sharper. Fasting can also improve sleep as you get digestion done earlier in the day. Better quality sleep brings a number of benefits, including a sharper mind.

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Set yourself up for success

There are several types of intermittent fasting plans. One method sets a six- to eight-hour eating window where you consume all of your calories for the day within a specific time period, such as between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Outside of this window, you drink only water, black coffee, tea, or other calorie-free beverages.

Another option is to fast for 24 hours one or two days a week. A third option is to eat only 500 calories two or more days a week and eat normally on the other days.

Before you begin, keep in mind that “this is not for everyone,” says Caroline Susie, RDN, a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. “If you are pregnant, breastfeeding, taking insulin for diabetes, or have a history of eating disorders, we don’t want you to go down that path.”

If you’re not sure if it’s safe for you, talk to your doctor. When you’re ready, try these tips:

Start small

If you normally eat three large meals with snacks in between throughout your waking hours, suddenly fasting for 18 hours a day may be challenging at first. Start with a 12-hour eating window, say 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Shorten this window a little each week.

Don’t forget your diet

Some people think they can just eat whatever they want during their fasting window. If you want to feel your best during fasting and reap all the health benefits of this lifestyle, eating a balanced diet with plenty of fruits, vegetables, fiber, whole grains and lean protein is “the key to success,” according to Susie.

Remember to drink enough

During fasting hours, you can drink as much water as you want, but you should also: “Some people get headaches and mistake this as a side effect of fasting, when in fact they are just dehydrated.”

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