Decrease the intake of carbohydrate-rich foods in favour of a higher consumption of fat-rich (lipid) foods.
A health diet diametrically opposed to the one we usually know in which carbohydrates and proteins are king at the expense of fats is the rule of this nutrition. The keto diet is tending to be democratized and to become a healthy diet, to be talked about, among the stars, on the networks, throughout the world because it allows you to eat rich and tasty dishes while having an impact in terms of your figure and weight (there is no shortage of recipes on the social networks) while maintaining a high level of energy.
Naturally and inevitably, it causes controversy.
Decrypting.
HISTORY
In the 1920s, doctors created the keto diet or ketogenic diet, or ketogenic diet in English, to mitigate fasting metabolism and treat refractory epilepsy in children. The keto diet originated as a medical therapy. This diet helped hundreds of patients and reduced the risk and frequency of epileptic seizures until about the 1940s, when anti-epileptic drugs became very successful. In the 1960s, Doctor Robert Atkins popularised a version of keto: the low carb diet which involves drastically reducing carbohydrates (low sugar) at first, and after reaching a healthy weight, increasing them a little.
Nowadays, the ketogenic diet or ketogenic diet is a diet practiced all over the world, especially in the United States and Europe. It is still prescribed to combat epileptic seizures and certain other pathologies but also in a search for weight loss, keeping one's figure, mental clarity, better sports performance, better sleep quality etc., and is considered risk-free.
The KETO DIET: DECRYPTAGE
DESPRECISES
Health authorities encourage us to eat5 fruits and vegetables a day, low saturated fat while distributing our daily energy intake as follows:
A daily intake of 55% carbohydrates, 30% fat and 15% protein (breakfast+lunch+dinner)
At the same time, with this nutrition, we note with horror the explosion of diabetes, obesity, risk of metabolic diseases etc over the last fifty years.
The ketogenic diet
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The ketogenic diet or keto diet consists ofdrastically decreasing the consumption of products containing carbohydrates in our diet in profile of a higher consumption of lipids or fats (oil, nuts and oilseeds, coconut oil). The ketogenic diet puts the body in a state of ketosis.
Daily carbohydrate (carb) consumption can vary between 20 grams and 50 grams in order to produce what is called:"ketone bodies". These values can of course vary according to each individual, as each person's body has its own specificities. Some fruits can be consumed in moderation as they have a low carbohydrate intake (berries, red fruits).
The average ratio of macronutrients is therefore quite different from the one we know.
It is 70-80% fat (rather than 30%), 20-25% protein (rather than 15%) and 5-10% carbohydrate (rather than 55%)
This reduction in carbohydrates has the effect of allowing the body to enter a state of ketosis.
This is in plain terms a change of fuel in our body. Indeed, the latter, deprived of carbohydrates, will use the available fats and make ketone bodies as a source of energy (note therefore the importance of knowing one's carbohydrate consumption in grams and calculating the grams of carbohydrates los when preparing a recipe) . What happens then is a reduction in glycogen (sugar) stores causing weight loss and many health benefits.
BENEFITS OF THE KETO DIET
Many scientific studies have attested for decades to the many health benefits of the ketogenic diet. Whether in the context of weight loss but also to treat serious diseases or to perform in sports or to lower insulin in diabetics and thus attempt to reverse type 2 diabetes.
3.1 The keto diet for weight loss:
The weight loss is the benefit that boosted the democratisation of this diet and made it famous. More than a dozen scientific studies agree on the evidence of effectiveness of the ketogenic diet for weight loss (compared to other known diets). In addition, there are many easy-to-make recipes for a varied diet. Previous weight loss diets recommended reducing fat and did not work in the long term. The state of ketosis generated by this diet is the key to success.
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This weight loss is promoted by thenatural process (ketosis) created by this diet on the body.
a/ Water loss
When one makes the transition from a high-carbohydrate diet to a low-carbohydrate diet, weight loss is rapid. This initially comes from water lost when youempty the body's glycogen stores, as the glycogen stored in the muscles and liver is bound to water.
b/ The transformation of the energy source
After this transition, deprived of sugar, the body will go and draw on the stored fat to release a new energy source thus creating the "ketone bodies" mentioned above. This is the energy source of the body.
c/ Better insulin sensitivity
This low-carbohydrate diet has the effect of improving insulin sensitivity making blood sugar spikes less severe, allowing blood sugar to be managed more effectively . This is of cardinal importance, as too high insulin and permanent or very high glucose spikes promote weight gain by storing this sugar as fat.
d/ Satiety
Another reason that promotes weight loss on the keto diet is: the feeling of satiety . The foods consumed on the ketogenic diet are dense and nutritionally rich, which promotes lower calorie consumption and explains the need to not crave food all the time . This type of food promotes an increase in leptin and ghrelin, the hormones that control appetite. In addition, MCT oil, which is derived from coconut, and MCT creams, also derived from coconut, allow the development of bulletproof coffee or fatty coffee, which acts effectively for a feeling of satiety between breakfast and lunch.
3.2 The keto diet in disease treatment
Many studies have been conducted to analyze the positive effects of the ketogenic diet on many diseases.
a/ The keto diet as a treatment for type 2 diabetes or pre-diabetes
The ketogenic diet, in the context of type 1 diabetes has shown more than promising effects but remains in its infancy for the moment. We will not mention it in this article.
With regard to type 2 diabetes, the beneficial effects of the keto diet are proven. An American study published in the journal Diabetes Therapy has thus shown that the keto diet can be beneficial in the fight against type 2 diabetes
In this study conducted on a panel of 349 people with this disease, after one year on the ketogenic diet, 94% of patients on insulin reduced their dosage or stopped their treatment. The proportion of participants who stopped their treatment was 1/3.
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b/: The keto diet against cancer
Several studies have highlighted that the ketogenic diet can help slow tumour growth, even stop its growth or even suppress the tumour in the best case. Scientific studies are also being conducted to investigate the effect of the keto diet on the sensitivity of tumours to chemotherapy.
Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5842847/
There are many well-documented books on the subject. We can cite: "Fighting cancer with the ketogenic diet" by Magali Walkowicz or: "The ketogenic diet against cancer" by Prof. Ulrike Kammerer, Dr. Christina Schlatterer, Dr. Gerd Knoll in which they tend to demonstrate, with scientific studies to back it up, that "the ketogenic diet is not a "miracle diet" : it is a dietary pattern based on centuries-old scientific research and, combined with regular physical activity, is arguably one of the best strategies against cancer today. "
c/The keto diet for epilepsy
The ketogenic diet was discovered through its results in the medical treatment of epilepsy. Ketones that are produced during long periods of fasting are associated with a reduction in epileptic fits. When the fast is broken with carbohydrate-rich foods, the seizures reappear. The keto diet, with its low carbohydrate content, mimics this fasting state and produces ketones. Researchers are investigating other reasons to better explain why this nutrition reduces seizures.
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d/ The keto diet against Alzheimer's disease
In people showing early signs of dementia, work by the Journal of The Alzheimer's disease" showed that the keto diet could boost cognitive reflexes in a panel of people with early Alzheimer's. From the sixth week of the diet, ketones appeared in the urine and an improvement in short-term memory was noted.
Source: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30856112/
The list of diseases is not exhaustive. Many other serious and less serious conditions are, in some cases, reduced or even completely eliminated by the ketogenic diet.
DISEASES WITH THE KETO DIET?
Articles claim that the ketogenic diet would cause nutritional deficiencies especially with regard to micronutrients i.e. vitamins and minerals. Micronutrients represent the essential nutrients as they help to slow down the aging process, protect the body from diseases etc
4.1 B vitamin deficiencies?
We can read that the keto diet would cause deficiencies in group B vitamins divided into seven main types (B1 (thiamine), B2 (riboflavin), B3 (niacin), B5 (pantothenic acid), B6 (pyridoxine), B7 (biotin), B9 (folate), and B12 (cyanocobalamin )
Or, the ketogenic diet is a diet in which certain foods are favored such as leafy greens, meat, fish, nuts, cheese which are families of foods that contain large amounts of them.
4.2 Vitamin A, C, K OR D deficiencies?
Many keto friendly foods contain vitamin A such as Kale, broccoli, spinach, liver, beef, cheese. As for vitamin C, parsley is a good source or peppers, mint, coriander, basil, thyme, dill, Brussels sprouts or spinach. As for vitamin K, many vegetables contain it (Brussels sprouts, broccoli, leafy vegetables) but also poultry, pasture meat, fish. For vitamin D, fatty fish, cheese, egg yolks, beef liver are made up of it.
4.3 Iodine deficiency?
Essential for proper thyroid function, iodine is found in many keto compatible foods such as cod, cheese, eggs, tuna and salt of course.
4.4 Iron deficiency?
Good amounts of iron are also found in spinach, pumpkin seeds, eggs, broccoli and in dark chocolate.
4.5 Omega 3 deficiencies
The ketogenic diet is a diet in which fatty fish have a prominent place. We find in this category of foods, salmon, sardines which are excellent sources of omega 3 . We can also mention eggs.
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4.6 The role of electrolytes
By depriving the body of carbohydrates, the glycogen deposits are emptied, and the electrolytes go with them, as these deposits are made up of one part glycogen and three parts water (this is one of the reasons why you feel more thirsty when following a keto diet)
The electrolytes are magnesium, potassium and sodium.
When, despite a balanced and varied keto diet, deficiencies can occur. Deficiencies due to the stress of daily life, certain intolerances or certain foods that we do not eat because they are simply not to our liking, yet rich in electrolytes.
A balanced ketogenic diet should therefore allow us to have an adequate level of electrolytes, thus avoiding any imbalance in these so important minerals, otherwise alternatives exist in supplementation.