So, the magic keto diet. There are so many rumors and speculations surrounding her, how many hopes are pinned on her, how many hours have been spent in the toilet because of her. Keto apologists preach about the rapid melting of fat glaciers, incredible performance, crystal clarity of mind, etc. and so on. in a similar spirit. We don’t know where this data comes from, because scientists are just beginning to study this diet under a microscope.
Let's discuss all the pros and cons of a fat diet.
The essence for beginners: what is it in simple words
Let's immediately clarify an important point: a high-fat diet (ketogenic diet) is still not a low-carbohydrate diet, it is primarily a diet with a super-high fat content.
The keto diet is a low-carb diet for weight loss with a moderate amount of protein in the diet and active consumption of fat.
If you are counting calories, the % distribution of calories would be:
- 80% of calories come from fat,
- 15% protein kcal. ,
- the remaining 5% are carbohydrates.
That is, at least 75% of the calories in your diet should come from fat; the sources of which can be eggs, bacon, sausages, avocados, vegetable oils, coconut oil, butter.
We also want to note that this is not a diet based on animal fats, the so-called. purely meat diet, not at all! Vegetables are consumed, but with moderate or complete avoidance of starchy vegetables such as potatoes.
What is important to know for beginners? What is a "fat diet" in simple words?
So, the essence of the ketogenic diet is simple in words. With such a nutritional system, the body enters a state called "ketosis" and begins to synthesize ketones for subsequent energy generation (hence the name "ketogenic" diet), and such a transition is possible only if carbohydrate intake is strictly limited.
Our body is able to fully meet its needs from fat reserves. But the absence of carbohydrates is terrible for our brain and nervous system, which need glucose: the brain cannot use fatty acids for its energy supply.
When we ignore carbohydrates, the body, in order not to stretch its legs, begins to pervert and create ersatz carbohydrates - ketone bodies.
Ketone bodies are organic biomolecules, soluble in aqueous media, which are synthesized in the liver from fatty acids when food intake (especially carbohydrates) decreases. Once transported to extrahepatic tissues, these biomolecules can be used as an energy source.
Ketone bodies are constantly synthesized in small quantities in the human body, but normally the concentration of ketones is so low that they are not detected in a urine test.
However, when the level of ketone bodies in the blood increases (a condition known as ketonemia), they begin to be excreted in the urine (known as ketonuria); ketonemia and ketonuria taken together indicate the body's transition into a state of ketosis.
The ultimate goal of the ketogenic diet is to place the body into a state of nutritional ketosis (not to be confused with pathological ketosis), which ultimately directs metabolism to use fatty acids and ketone bodies as the main source of energy.
In the initial stages, the main thing is not to overdo it with the amount of protein.
If you eat too much protein (more than 20%), the body starts the process of gluconeogenesis, and eventually all the excess protein is converted into glucose, which prevents you from entering a state of ketosis.
So it's important to choose fatty foods with some protein. There is no need to lean on chicken, but rather buy fatty cuts of beef. Instead of diet turkey bacon, buy regular bacon. Only 20% of your calories should come from protein.
Also remember, you need to drink a lot, a lot. Because the main sign of ketosis is the smell of acetone on your body and breath. Cool, right?
The fact is that excess fat derivatives are excreted by the body, giving this specific smell. Earlier, we discussed that fat energy factories are the most "polluting".
It is not always possible to completely remove the smell. But most of the smell can be removed with plenty of clean water.
Those. When you drink a lot of water (from 3 liters per day), excess ketones are excreted in urine and sweat. This removes most of the odor after a shower. In addition, it improves well-being (eliminates lethargy).
Interesting fact: the keto diet was originally invented for epileptics.
Why we do not recommend: the dangers of eating fat
For one simple reason: this is not a balanced diet. And such diets, which openly demonize any foods, are absolutely not included in our concept: "Beauty does not require sacrifice, beauty requires health. "What kind of freedom from the pressures of the pope can we talk about when you exclude a huge amount of food from your diet? . .
We do not deny that the body can exist more or less adequately in conditions of minimal or complete absence of carbohydrates, subject to adequate protein intake and the physiologically necessary amount of fat, but ideally still ensure the presence of all three nutrients in the diet, i. e. Use a balanced diet to lose weight!
Is it possible to lose weight
Often people, in pursuit of slimness, begin to believe in all sorts of fairy tales like "exclude this group of foods and the weight will go away by itself. "This is where such monsters are born, such as the paleo diet.
Let's look at this interesting question with you: "Is it possible to lose weight by eliminating protein, carbohydrates or fats from the diet? "The brilliant Line McDonald will help us with this (the following are excerpts from his work).
Let's imagine that you eat a certain amount of calories, but gain them from different sources: in the first case, you will gain them mainly from carbohydrates; in the second - from proteins, and in the third - from fats.
On carbohydrates
Let's imagine that we get most of our calories from carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are rarely converted into fat (a process called de novo lipogenesis) under normal dietary conditions.
There are exceptional situations, for example, chronic overeating of carbohydrates. This means 700-900 grams of net carbs per day for several days.
In this situation, carbohydrates overwhelm glycogen stores, exceeding the required number of calories for the day, and you end up converting carbohydrates into body fat.
But when you eat more carbs, you burn more carbs and less fat. And that's why, even if carbs don't convert directly into fat, too many carbs make you fatter.
In general, by inhibiting the breakdown of fats, an excess of carbohydrates forces you to store all the fats you eat in the form of subcutaneous reserves, preventing you from burning the existing ones.
Yes, carbohydrates do not make you fatter directly through storage into fat, but an excess of carbohydrates still affects your fat reserves, preventing you from burning the fat you eat during the day.
This is why exceeding your daily caloric intake by 500 calories of fat or 500 calories of carbohydrates makes you fat, they just do it for different reasons and in different ways.
An additional 500 calories of fat are simply stored under the skin, and 500 calories of carbohydrates make it so that all the fat eaten during the day will go into reserves, because carbohydrates will be oxidized, not fats.
Bottom line: When you eat more carbs, you burn more carbs and less fat; when you eat less carbs you will burn less carbs and more fat. Unexpected, right?
On a squirrel
Protein buddy is never converted into fat or stored that way. But if you eat a lot of protein, the body will use it for energy (rather than carbs and fats), which means other nutrients will go into storage.
As a result, overeating protein will make you fat, just not directly, but due to the fact that all the fat you eat goes under the skin.
Of course, protein has the highest thermic effect, so more of the incoming calories will be used to digest the food. Excess protein is less likely to make you fat anyway, but if the balance of calories is exceeded, you will still get fat.
But not through direct conversion of protein into fat, but through a decrease in the number of other nutrients burned.
Bottom line: if you eat more protein, you burn more protein (and therefore less fat and carbs); eat less protein and you'll burn less protein (and therefore more carbs and fat). Introducing your face, you now clearly look something like this:
On fat
Fats supplied with food are mainly stored; if you eat more of them, this does not significantly affect the oxidation of subcutaneous fat.
When you eat fats, their fate is to be deposited in fat reserves, because. . . their consumption has very little effect on fat oxidation. It also does not have a significant effect on protein or carbohydrate oxidation.
Overall conclusion: All three options make you fatter, but the mechanisms are different.
The only difference is that fat is stored directly, and proteins and carbohydrates force you to store the fat that you eat.
Of course, there will be those who will misunderstand that low-carb and/or low-protein diets have no advantage over others in terms of burning subcutaneous fat.
But with these diets, even though you burn more fat, you also eat more fatty foods. So the overall fat balance remains the same, despite changes in other components. No matter how you look at it, it all comes down to energy balance and calorie deficit.
Surely you have a logical question, why not stop eating fat?
This is because carbohydrates are converted into fat by de novo lipogenesis. This is the case when the amount of fat consumed through the diet falls below 10% of the total calories consumed. In this case, your body starts the process of de novo lipogenesis, so you will still gain weight.
The body is smarter than us. In a situation of adequate fat intake (that is, above 10% of total calories), the fate of the fat we eat is to be stored in fat reserves, and proteins and carbohydrates are used for other processes.
And when the amount of fat consumed is too small, the body begins to convert carbohydrates (and most likely protein, although much less frequently) to store them as fat.
Lie or truth
Of course, under certain conditions, the keto diet will work and you will lose weight. But it’s not about her, not about fats and not about a special menu. The fact is that you will simply eat less!
That's how long they've been vilifying diets, but people don't believe it: and rightly so, because diets work!
Here, for example, is a meta-analysis of about 50 studies that compared 11 popular diets that can be grouped: low-carbohydrate (Atkins, South Beach, Zone), low-fat (Ornish, Rosemary Conley), balanced (Jenny Craig, Nutrisystem, Weight Watchers).
It turned out that (surprise) any diet for weight loss is better than no diet.
After six months, people on low-carb diets lost more weight. But the overall difference in weight loss (differences in indicators) among all diets is insignificant: a few hundred grams.
For example, on low-carbohydrate diets for 6 months, the average weight loss was 8. 73 kg and 7. 25 kg in 12 months, and on low-fat diets 7. 99 kg in 6 months and 7. 27 kg in 12 months.
Research has shown that compared to a severely calorie-restricted diet, a low-carb diet may be slightly more effective for weight loss in the short term.
This is partly due to a decrease in the body's glycogen stores (in the liver and muscles) and the associated fluid loss (which totals about 2 kg for a typical adult). But, as we can see, in the long term there is very little difference between them.
A study that compared low-carb and low-fat diets over the past 2 years found that there was no significant difference in weight loss between the two.
By the way, please note that the diet was most effective in the first six months. And after a year, the weight generally began to increase. A striking example of metabolic adaptation.
Benefit and effect
The ketogenic diet does not make people hungry and does not take away calories. Roughly speaking, we simply compensate for the decrease in carbohydrates with proteins and fats.
Of course, this does not mean that by sharply reducing carbohydrate intake, you can overeat fatty and protein foods. Calorie intake must be kept within normal limits. Another undoubted advantage of the keto diet is appetite control.
Many people who have been on one diet or another know that the strongest appetite comes just during the diet. The keto diet eliminates the feeling of hunger. Fatty and protein foods, which the keto diet is rich in, allow a person not to experience a brutal appetite and at the same time lose weight.
Harm
Considering that the ketogenic diet places an emphasis on fatty and protein foods, digestive disorders are possible - heaviness in the stomach, bloating, constipation.
This is because the diet contains virtually no fiber, found in bread, potatoes, fruits and vegetables. To avoid digestive problems, you should consume some vegetables and fruits in minimal quantities. For example, cabbage and sour grapes are suitable.
Another disadvantage of the keto diet is the unpredictability of glucose deficiency. It is unknown how your body will behave if you deprive it of such an important energy resource.
It will take time for the body to convert to ketone bodies. As a rule, in the first week a person feels malaise, dizziness and general weakness. It is important to hold out for at least 21 days to see the results of the diet.
A decrease in the amount of micronutrients (vitamins/minerals, etc. ) is a common occurrence with any low-carbohydrate diet, because the bulk of micronutrients comes to us from carbohydrate foods. Therefore, you need to use vitamin-mineral complexes.
A decrease in blood acidity occurs as a response due to an increase in the amount of ketones in it.
If you have problems with carbohydrate metabolism (for example, diabetes), then vomiting and "ketoacidosis" are possible. In a healthy body, ketones are utilized without consequences. By the way, the smell of acetone confirms this (a sign of ketone utilization).
We are already seeing ketosis people rushing into the comments shouting "I’ve been in ketosis for 116 days and I’m more active than ever! "Let’s tell you our personal opinion, ketosis people are worse than vegans in online battles. Not all, but for some reason very many.
Go to any article on this topic, and you will see how they pour buckets of dirt on the author, simply because he does not write laudatory odes to fat. We always advise them to eat buckwheat and calm down.
This probably comes from the fact that a person projects his personal, internal dispute onto others. This happens especially often in matters of nutrition/sports/religion. For example, a person’s mind is forced to constantly argue with many factors, and such a person seeks to voice arguments against them out loud, in a dispute with an external opponent, in order to thus feel like a winner.
Another example is that a neophyte of some food system suppresses his own doubts in such disputes. In short, these people are not arguing with you, but with themselves, it’s better not to disturb them, they will bite you to death, you are made of protein and fat.
In addition, if you personally "everything is a lie, I don’t eat coals and feel great, " then this does not mean that this happens to others too! An individual's personal experience cannot prove or disprove anything.
Why? Yes, because these "personal opinions" and reviews of yours are a carriage and a small cart and everyone is different. Who will you trust, who has a more beautiful nickname?
Contraindications for use
For any deviations from health, any diet or exercise should be used only after consulting a doctor. People with diseases of the kidneys, digestive system, or intestines should not use the keto diet.
Glucose deficiency at first greatly affects brain activity, so such a diet is undesirable for mental workers.
And by the way, the American Dietetic Association does not recommend the keto diet due to ketoacidosis, but recommends other diets that contain more carbohydrates.
Reference: diabetic ketoacidosis (ketoacidosis) is a variant of metabolic acidosis associated with impaired carbohydrate metabolism resulting from insulin deficiency: high concentrations of glucose and ketone bodies in the blood.
On the one hand, the keto diet is simple, on the other hand, it is very difficult. Of course, everything depends on the chosen form. Some people act so fanatically that the diet ends badly. You can’t neglect the rules of the diet, you need to listen to your body and give it a break. Ultimately, the main thing is health, you shouldn’t forget about it. Think for yourself, decide for yourself.