Ketogenic diet
You have surely noticed that the ketogenic diet, or keto diet for short, continues to enjoy great popularity. Programs that include keto eating promise high protein content, rapid weight loss without hunger or exercise, healthy and tasty meals, and lasting results. You may also come across statements like “watch out for forbidden foods so you don’t interrupt your weight loss.” Is the keto diet really a miraculous way to lose weight quickly and easily?
What is the keto diet?
The keto diet is a diet based on fat intake (although it is often not presented as such). The distribution of macronutrients in this diet is as follows:
- Carbohydrates: < 10%
- Protein: 15–25%
- Fats: 70–80%
It is classified as a weight-loss diet, and carbohydrates are almost entirely avoided. Protein intake is moderate. The goal of this diet is to put the body into a state of ketosis, which is a metabolic state where the body uses fat as a source of energy instead of carbohydrates. This occurs when carbohydrates are significantly restricted. This limits the intake of glucose, which is the main source of energy for cells. Instead, the body uses ketones, which are substances produced in the body from fats in this state.
When is the keto diet used?
Many of you surely know the keto diet as a common weight-loss diet. However, it also has therapeutic uses in clinical nutrition, which is, after all, why this diet was originally created. It is used to treat epilepsy in children, as well as in the treatment of diabetes, obesity, or impaired insulin sensitivity. It can also serve individuals who urgently need to reduce weight but do not have the opportunity for physical activity, such as people after surgery. It can also be used by athletes who need to lose weight to fit into a specific weight category for sports that do not depend on glycogen stores, such as powerlifting.
Why the keto diet will NOT help you lose weight?
As we have already explained, the goal of keto eating is to get the body into a state of ketosis. However, getting into this state does not mean you will automatically start losing weight. Even in ketosis, you can gain fat if the amount of energy intake exceeds expenditure. Just like with any weight-loss diet, it is solely about a caloric deficit. Therefore, if an overweight person with a sedentary lifestyle and a poorly set meal plan starts a keto diet, it is very likely they will lose weight because they will be in a large caloric deficit. In this case, however, any weight-loss diet would work.
You may have also heard that lipolysis increases on a keto diet, meaning fat burning. This is true. The body does not receive carbohydrates, so it uses fats as an energy substrate. However, there are two significant “buts.” First, fat burning only increases during the first weeks of the diet, and not thereafter. And second: hand in hand with increasing lipolysis goes increasing lipogenesis, i.e., fat storage. Whether fats will be stored or burned is again decided by our good old caloric deficit.
The keto diet and its relationship to weight loss have been studied for over 40 years. The results of such studies show that people following a keto diet lose the same amount of weight as people following other types of weight-loss diets, such as a low-fat diet. The reason for weight loss is always the same: an energy deficit.
During the first weeks on a keto diet, you will lose weight very quickly. However, the lost kilograms are not fat, but mostly water. The reason is the loss of glycogen (the storage form of glucose) in the muscles due to low carbohydrate intake. Water binds to glycogen, which leads to the dehydration of the body. Therefore, you will not achieve the desired loss of fat, but of water and muscle. So, if you are trying to gain muscle or build as much volume as possible, the keto diet will definitely not be for you.
Disadvantages of the keto diet
Scientific studies have shown that it is not beneficial to follow a keto diet in the long term. They confirmed higher mortality in people with low carbohydrate intake compared to people with a normal intake, i.e., around 50% carbohydrates in their diet.
Excessive fat intake increases the risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and other cardiovascular diseases or non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Of course, the choice of fats and the quality of the food in question are important.
Another disadvantage of the keto diet is the limited choice of foods, which can lead to a deficiency of certain vitamins or minerals.
Advantages of the keto diet
Although the ketogenic diet will not miraculously help you lose weight, it brings certain benefits for some groups. An example is the treatment of diabetic or obese patients, where following a keto diet can lead to an improvement in blood sugars and lipids or the adjustment of insulin levels.
Conclusion
As is likely apparent, the principle of all weight-loss diets is creating a caloric deficit. Therefore, there is no single most effective weight-loss diet, only different types that are sustainable for everyone in different ways, depending solely on your preferences and lifestyle. It is ideal to avoid extreme eating. Sustainable habits are important because losing weight is only the beginning of success. If you decide to follow a diet for some time, make sure it brings you certain habits so you can smoothly transition to regular eating that will be sustainable. Also, remember protein, which is key in a diet because it satiates you the most and thus makes the meal plan sustainable. NutritionPro meal boxes are also a sustainable path full of protein. Just choose a weight-loss program, and boxes full of all the necessary nutrients are on their way. Avoid extremes and start your journey that will help you shed pounds and maintain your dream figure. You can read more about healthy and sustainable weight loss on our blog.
Author: Ing. Kristina Heřmanová
