Fraud or Truth: Details About the Ketogenic Diet

So, the amazing keto diet. There were so many rumors and speculations surrounding her, so many hopes pinned on her, so many hours spent in the toilet because of her. Keto defenders tout rapid melting of fat glaciers, incredible performance, mental clarity, and more. etc. In a similar spirit. We don't know where this data comes from because scientists are just starting to study this diet under the microscope.Let’s discuss all the pros and cons of a fat diet.

The Essence of Beginners: What It Is in a Nutshell

Let’s clarify an important point first: a high-fat diet (ketogenic diet) is still not a low-carb diet, it is primarily a diet with a very high fat content.The ketogenic diet is a low-carbohydrate weight loss diet that contains moderate amounts of protein and actively consumes fat.If you count calories, the calorie distribution percentage will be:

• 80% of calories come from fat,
• 15% protein kilocalories,
• The remaining 5% are carbohydrates.

That is, at least 75% of the calories in your diet should come from fat; sources can be eggs, bacon, sausage, avocado, vegetable oil, coconut oil, butter.We also want to point out that this is not a so-called animal fat-based diet. Pure meat, not at all! Eat vegetables, but avoid starchy vegetables such as potatoes in moderation or completely.What is important for beginners to know? What is a "fat diet" in simple terms?Therefore, the essence of the ketogenic diet is simple. Under such a nutritional system, the body enters a state called "ketosis" and begins to synthesize ketones for subsequent energy production (hence the term "ketogenic" diet), and this transition can only occur under strictThis is only possible if you limit your carbohydrate intake.Our body is able to adequately meet its needs through fat reserves. But a lack of carbohydrates is terrible for our brains and nervous systems, because they need glucose: the brain can't use fatty acids for energy.When we ignore carbs, the body, in order not to stretch its legs, begins to twist and produce fake carbs - ketone bodies.Ketone bodies are organic biomolecules that are soluble in aqueous media and are synthesized in the liver from fatty acids when food intake (especially carbohydrates) is reduced. Once transported to extrahepatic tissues, these biomolecules can be used as a source of energy.Ketone bodies are continuously synthesized in the body in small amounts, but usually in such low concentrations that they are undetectable in a urine test.However, when levels of ketone bodies increase in the blood (called ketonemia), they begin to be excreted in the urine (called ketonuria); ketonemia and ketonuria together indicate the body's transition to a state of ketosis.The ultimate goal of the ketogenic diet is to bring the body into a state of nutritional ketosis (not to be confused with pathological ketosis), ultimately directing metabolism to use fatty acids and ketone bodies as the primary source of energy.In the initial stages, the main thing is not to consume too much protein.If you eat too much protein (more than 20%), your body will begin the process of gluconeogenesis and eventually all excess protein will be converted to glucose, preventing you from entering a state of ketosis.Therefore, it is important to choose fatty foods that contain some protein. There's no need to rely on chicken, instead buy plump beef. Buy regular bacon, not diet turkey bacon. Only 20% of calories should come from protein.Also remember, you need to drink a lot. Because the main symptom of ketosis is the smell of acetone in your body and breath. Cool, right?In fact, excess fat derivatives are excreted by the body, giving rise to this special smell. As we discussed earlier, fat energy factories are the most "polluting".It's not always possible to completely remove the odor. But most odors can be removed with plenty of water.Those ones. When you drink large amounts of water (3+ liters per day), excess ketones are excreted from the body through urine and sweat. This will eliminate most post-shower odors. Additionally, it improves health (eliminates drowsiness).

Fun fact: The ketogenic diet was originally invented for people with epilepsy.

Why we don’t recommend it: The dangers of eating fat

The reason is simple: this is not a balanced diet. And this kind of eating habit that blatantly demonizes any food definitely does not belong to our philosophy: "Beauty does not require sacrifice, beauty requires health. "What kind of freedom from papal pressure can we talk about when you eliminate large amounts of food from your diet?We do not deny that the body can survive more or less adequately with a minimal or complete lack of carbohydrates given the intake of adequate protein and a physiologically necessary amount of fat, but ideally still ensure that the dietAll three nutrients are present, IE. Lose weight with a balanced diet!

Can I lose weight?

Many times, in order to pursue slimness, people begin to believe in fairy tales such as "if you eliminate this group of foods, the weight will disappear on its own. "This is where monsters like the paleo diet are born.Let us look at this interesting question with you: "Is it possible to lose weight by eliminating protein, carbohydrates or fat from your diet? " The talented Line McDonald will help us in this regard (below)excerpts from his works).Let’s imagine that you eat a certain amount of calories, but get them from different sources: in the first case, you get them mainly from carbohydrates; You get them from carbohydrates; in the first case, you get them mainly from carbohydrates. The second - from protein, the third - from fat.

About carbohydrates

Let's imagine that most of our calories come from carbohydrates. Under normal dietary conditions, very little carbohydrate is converted into fat (a process called de novo lipogenesis).There are some special cases, such as chronic excessive intake of carbohydrates. This means eating 700-900 grams of net carbs per day for several days.In this situation, carbohydrates exceed glycogen stores and exceed the number of calories needed for the day, ultimately converting carbohydrates into body fat.But when you eat more carbs, you burn more carbs and less fat. That's why too many carbs can make you fatter, even if they don't convert directly to fat.Generally speaking, by inhibiting the breakdown of fat, excess carbohydrates force you to store all ingested fat in the form of subcutaneous reserves, thereby preventing you from burning existing fat.Yes, carbs won't directly make you fat by being stored as fat, but excess carbs can still affect your fat stores and prevent you from burning the fat you eat during the day.This is why eating more than 500 calories of fat or 500 calories of carbs per day will make you fat, just for different reasons and in different ways.The other 500 calories of fat are just stored under the skin, and the 500 calories of carbohydrates cause all the fat eaten during the day to be stored because the carbohydrates are oxidized instead of the fat.Bottom line: When you eat more carbs, you burn more carbs and less fat; when you eat fewer carbs, you burn fewer carbs and more fat. Unexpected?

on squirrel

Protein Buddy is never converted to fat or stored that way. But if you eat a lot of protein, your body will use it for energy (instead of carbohydrates and fat), which means other nutrients will be stored.So overeating protein will make you fat, just not directly, but because all the fat you eat gets under your skin.Of course, protein has the highest thermic effect, so more incoming heat will be used to digest the food. In any case, excess protein is unlikely to make you fat, but if you exceed the calorie balance, you can still gain weight.But not by converting protein directly into fat, but by reducing the amount of other nutrients burned.Bottom line: If you eat more protein, you'll burn more protein (and thus less fat and carbs); if you eat less protein, you'll burn less protein (and therefore burn more carbs and fat)). Introducing your face, you obviously look like this right now:

About fat

The fat provided by food is mainly stored, and eating too much will not have a significant impact on the oxidation of subcutaneous fat.When you eat fats, their fate is to be stored in fat stores because. . . their consumption has very little effect on fat oxidation. It also has no significant effect on protein or carbohydrate oxidation.Overall conclusion: All three options will make you fatter, but by different mechanisms.The only difference is that fat is stored directly, while protein and carbohydrates force you to store the fat you eat.Of course, some people misunderstand that low-carb and/or low-protein diets have no advantage over other diets in burning subcutaneous fat.But with these diets, even though you're burning more fat, you're also eating more fatty foods. Therefore, although other ingredients have changed, the overall fat balance remains the same. No matter how you look at it, it all comes down to energy balance and calorie deficit.You must have a logical question, why not stop eating fat?This is because carbohydrates are converted into fat through de novo lipogenesis. This occurs when the amount of fat consumed through diet is less than 10% of the total calories consumed. In this case, your body starts the process of regenerating fat, so you still gain weight.The body is smarter than us. In the case of sufficient fat intake (that is, accounting for more than 10% of total calories), the fate of the fat we eat is to be stored in fat reserves, while the protein and carbohydrates are used for other processes.When too little fat is consumed, the body begins to convert carbohydrates (most likely protein, although much less frequently) to store them as fat.

Lie or truth

Of course, under certain conditions, the ketogenic diet will work and you will lose weight. But it’s not about her, it’s not about the fat, it’s not about the special menu. The truth is, you’ll just eat less!They've been vilifying diets for so long, but people don't believe it: it's right because diets work!For example, here is a meta-analysis of about 50 studies comparing 11 popular diets, which can be divided into: low-carb (Atkins, South Beach, Zone), low-fat (Oni)Diet, Rosemary Conley Diet), Balanced Diet (Jenny Craig Diet), Nutrisystem, Weight Watchers).It turns out (surprisingly) that any weight loss diet is better than no diet at all.After six months, those on the low-carb diet lost more weight. But the overall difference in weight loss effects (differences in indicators) across all diets was not significant: a few hundred grams.For example, after 6 months of low-carbohydrate diet, the average weight loss was 8. 73 kg and 7. 25 kg in 12 months, and in 6 months of low-fat diet, the average weight loss was 7. 99 kg, and the average weight loss in 12 months was 7. 27 kg. .Research shows that a low-carbohydrate diet may be more effective for weight loss in the short term than a severely calorie-restricted diet.This is partly due to a reduction in the body's glycogen stores (in the liver and muscles) and associated fluid losses (a total of approximately 2 kg for a typical adult). But, as we can see, there is little difference between them in the long run.A study comparing low-carb and low-fat diets over two years found no significant difference in weight loss.By the way, please note that the diet is most effective during the first six months. And after a year, the weight generally starts to increase. A striking example of metabolic adaptation.

Benefits and effects

The ketogenic diet doesn’t make you hungry and doesn’t strip away calories. Roughly speaking, we are simply compensating for the decrease in carbohydrates with protein and fat.Of course, this doesn't mean you can overeat fats and proteins by drastically reducing your carbohydrate intake. Calorie intake must remain within normal limits. Another undoubted advantage of the keto diet is appetite control.Many people who have been on some kind of diet know that the strongest cravings occur during the diet. The keto diet eliminates hunger pangs. The ketogenic diet is rich in fat and protein foods, which can prevent people from having a strong appetite and lose weight at the same time.

harm

Considering the ketogenic diet emphasizes fat and protein foods, digestive disorders are possible - heaviness in the stomach, bloating, constipation.This is because the diet contains almost no fiber from bread, potatoes, fruits and vegetables. To avoid digestive problems, you should eat some vegetables and fruits in small amounts. For example, cabbage and sour grapes are suitable.Another disadvantage of the keto diet is the unpredictability of glucose deficiency. It's unclear how your body will perform if you are deprived of such an important energy resource.It takes time for the body to convert into ketones. Typically, during the first week, a person will experience discomfort, dizziness, and general weakness. It is important to stick with the diet for at least 21 days to see the results of the diet.Reduced levels of micronutrients (vitamins/minerals, etc. ) are a common phenomenon with any low-carb diet, as most micronutrients come from carbohydrate foods. Therefore, you need to use a vitamin-mineral complex.Due to the increase in ketone levels in the blood, blood acidity decreases.If you have a problem with carbohydrate metabolism (such as diabetes), you may experience vomiting and "ketoacidosis. "In a healthy body, ketone use has no consequences. By the way, the smell of acetone confirms this (a sign of ketone utilization).We've seen keto sufferers flood the comments shouting "I've been in ketosis for 116 days and I'm more active than ever! " To give you our personal opinion, keto people are doing more in the online battle than veganismOr worse. Not all of them, but a lot for some reason.Scroll through any article on the subject and you'll see how they throw dirt on the author just because he doesn't write odes to fat. We always advise them to eat buckwheat and calm down.This may come from the fact that one projects one's own intra-personal disputes onto others. This is especially common with nutritional/exercise/religious issues. For example, a person's mind is forced to constantly argue with many factors, and such a person in an argument with an external opponent tries to loudly argue against these factors in order to feel like a winner.Another example is when someone new to the food system suppresses his doubts in the midst of such a controversy. In short, these people are not arguing with you, they are arguing with themselves. It is best not to bother them. They will bite you to death. You are made of protein and fat.Also, if you personally think "it's all a lie, I don't eat coal and feel fine", that doesn't mean it will happen to other people! One's personal experience cannot prove or disprove anything.Why? Yes, because these "personal opinions" and comments of yours are a wagon and a cart, and everyone is different. Who will you believe, who has a more beautiful nickname?

Contraindications for use

As with any deviation from health, any diet or exercise should be done in consultation with a doctor. People with kidney, digestive, or intestinal disease should not use the keto diet.Glucose deficiency will first greatly affect brain activity, so such a diet is not advisable for mental workers.By the way, the American Dietetic Association does not recommend the keto diet for ketoacidosis, but instead recommends other diets that contain more carbohydrates.

Reference: Diabetic ketoacidosis (ketoacidosis) is a variant of metabolic acidosis associated with impaired carbohydrate metabolism due to insulin deficiency: high concentrations of glucose and ketone bodies in the blood.

The ketogenic diet is easy on the one hand and very difficult on the other. Of course, everything depends on the chosen format. Some people are so overzealous that their diet results in bad results. You can't ignore dietary rules, you need to listen to your body and give it a rest. Finally, the most important thing is health and you should not forget about it. Think for yourself and decide for yourself.