Keto Diet Review: A Guide to Losing Weight the Low-Carb Way

Talked about the vegan diet and intermittent fasting. Here is a Keto Diet Review by Dr. Vero.

So I thought today I’d dive into the ketogenic diet, aka the Keto diet review. There is a lot of hype surrounding this type of food, and there has been a lot of talk about the benefits.

So let’s talk a little bit more about what this kind of diet consists of and what you’re allowed to eat. Everything from the benefits to the side effects is covered! ✓

First things first: Keto Diet Review

All diets consist of certain macronutrients, aka macros. Believe it or not, I didn’t start counting my macros until recently because my fitness coach asked me to track them during my 1-month fitness plan.

In general, all diets consist of 3 macros: Protein, Fats, and Carbohydrates.

A healthy diet is said to consist of:

• 20% protein
• 30% of fats
• 50% carbohydrates

is quite different from a keto diet, in which your primary source of energy comes from fats and protein. ✓

• 30-35% protein
• 55-60% fat
• 5-10% carbs

You are basically limited to up to 50g of carbs PER DAY, and some even go beyond to 20g max.

So what happens to your body when you decrease your carb intake this much? Here is the direct link to the video about the Keto Diet review by Dr. Vero. Check it for a quick review. 

1. 1. GLUCONEOGENESIS

      1. This is yet another outstanding method for producing glucose (sugar) from the ground up. Your body can get glucose (sugar) from your diet, like carbohydrates, or it can make its own in the liver through this process.
      2. Sugar primarily triggers the release of insulin, which in turn drives the storage of fat and glucose. This low-carbohydrate state reduces fat storage and helps lower blood sugar.
   2. KETOGENESIS
      1. When the body cannot produce glucose quickly enough to meet its energy needs, it begins to generate ketones.
      2. The term “keto diet” simply refers to the process of generating ketone bodies. These ketone bodies produce more energy than regular sugar, so it has been called a kind of super fuel.

   So what are a few of the Keto diet BENEFITS?

   1. The Keto diet can lead to fat loss while preserving lean body mass.
   2. It can improve symptoms in patients with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), including mental health-related signs.
   3. Low-carb and low-protein diets may reverse diabetic neuropathy (diabetic nerve pain).
   4. Low-carb diets can improve glycemic control in obese patients with type 2 diabetes.
   5. Low-carb diets can also improve blood pressure.

What about some SIDE EFFECTS? Well, it can include mild symptoms known as the keto flu, which usually get better within a few days or weeks. This includes: ✓

1. Headache
2. Difficulty in exercise tolerance
3. Nausea
4. Vomiting
5. Dizziness
6. Fatigue
7. Constipation

Other side effects include:

8. Diarrhea
9. Insomnia

• Backache
• If you have type 2 diabetes, it can lead to hypoglycemic events (low glucose), especially when taking sulfonylureas such as metformin. Be sure to consult your doctor before starting this type of diet. Your glycemic control and medication type may affect your response to this diet, so consult your doctor before starting.

Those were just some short-term effects. What about more long-term effects?

• Fatty liver
• Kidney stones
• Mineral deficiencies
• LDL (bad cholesterol) might increase (which is odd because another study showed it might improve; we can’t be too sure).

Questions you might ask yourself:

1. What happens if you stay ketogenic long-term?
   • There was a study where obese participants maintained a keto diet for 24 weeks. It turns out that there were significant benefits to their BMI, with total cholesterol and bad cholesterol decreasing, while good cholesterol increased. Blood glucose decreased too.
   • DISCLAIMER = Since the study was done among obese participants, we cannot extend these results to non-obese participants.
2. Is this diet right for you?
   • If you only have these side effects for a short time or react well, then why not?
3. If you are considering this diet, what steps should you take?
   • Go see your doctor for your proper checkup. If fatty meals exacerbate your medical issues, you should probably avoid adopting a high-fat diet.
4. If you’re an overall healthy person, should you do this diet?
   • If you would like to try it and observe the results, feel free to do so. If you have medical conditions, consult your doctor first! Actually, consult your doctor anyway whenever you’re starting a new diet.

Fun fact:

• Did you guys know that colostrum, the first milk that is let down in breast milk, is ketogenic? This means that all newborns can survive and be well-nourished on a ketogenic formula, but remember that colostrum production switches to regular milk production about day 4. Definitely nothing like a longer-term ketogenic diet, but still a fun fact, in my opinion. ✓

Summary:

Like any lifestyle change, it can be difficult to sustain this kind of diet. It is safe for otherwise healthy patients to try this type of diet for 2–3 weeks or even up to a year. Just make sure you follow up with your doctor so he can monitor you and your health while you’re on it. Also, remember that tapering OFF the diet is important. What does that mean? Don’t be keto for weeks and suddenly start eating foods high in carbs again. Make sure you gradually transition from keto to a regular diet.

The bottom line is, we know the short-term effects of this type of diet, but the long-term effects are less well-known. Doctors don’t recommend it because we don’t know if it helps with anything else, but it can help with glucose control in type 2 diabetics, reverse diabetic nerve pain if protein is restricted, and help with rapid weight loss that can be maintained for up to 2 years. ✓

Whether or not you have followed or will follow a keto diet, I hope you learned something new!

If you have any questions, feel free to comment or just follow me on IG and let me know!

I currently don’t have any plans of trying KETO, but if that ever changes, I will definitely let you know and let you follow along just as I did with the vegan diet. Discover the amazing benefits of flexibility training for improved mobility.

Stay safe! Stay healthy! And always stay curious!