Dave, I don’t think 3 days is enough to get to “starvation,” i.e. one would already have to be there at the outset… Gatorade Zero looks pretty good to me - negligible carbs and not much else at all.
From everything I’ve read, in the second day of fasting you’re going to have autophagy being upregulated - probably no matter what, and especially in the case of coming from a ketogenic diet. If you go 3 days, no question that you’re getting some good benefit.
The increase in autophagy is controlled to a large extent by the nutrient-sensing kinases mTOR and AMPK, and I think you’re fine on that score - Gatorade Zero ain’t gonna mess with them enough to be concerned.
One thing that also affects autophagy significantly is the levels of insulin and glucagon, and the ratio between them. The only really negative thought I have is that if drinking it gives you a meaningful rise in insulin due to the ‘cephalic phase insulin release’ then that may be damping down autophagy.
I see the Gatorade Zero ingredients as: Water, Citric Acid, Natural Flavor, Sodium Citrate, Salt, Monopotassium Phosphate, Modified Food Starch, Mixed Triglycerides, Sucralose, Glycerol Ester Of Rosin, Acesulfame Potassium.
That last one - “Ace-K” - people argue about it and I do believe that it affects different people differently. I would not worry about it…
