The keto diet. What is the ketogenic diet? What are the results of the keto diet and what are the reviews. how does it work, are there any difficulties, which menuon a keto diet and is it harmful.
- The Keto Diet
- The keto diet is a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet aimed at triggering ketone bodies in the body.
Why is the ketogenic diet effective, what are the contraindications and reviews, what is the principle of action? What should be included inketo diet menu and what about the reviews of those who have lost weight? We will discuss this today.
How does the keto diet work?
When fats, proteins and carbohydrates are present in our diet, our body gets energy from glucose. We get glucose just from carbohydrates. Now that grocery stores are in direct accessibility, this is the most common type of food. But what happened in those days when there was not enough carbohydrate products such as cereals or bread due to poor harvest, habitat halo or seasonality?
The carcass was forced to take energy from fatty acids and proteins. You may remember my video about running for weight loss - here it is - in it I looked at the process of obtaining energy by oxidizing fatty acids. Now I will briefly remind you - everythingour organs, which have mitochondria in tissue cells, work great on fatty acids. This is the heart muscle of the myocardium, and skeletal muscles (the one that we pump in the gym) and smooth muscles.
However, our brain, which is 60% fat, does not lose weight, even a long hunger strike does not significantly harm mental abilities. Why? Reason - BBB The blood-brain barrier is a barrier that ensures the permanence of the internalenvironment of the brain. It is he who does not allow fatty acids to pass - neither outward (which is why the brain does not lose weight), but also inward. And the brain is unable to consume fatty acids as an energy source.
However, the brain cannot remain without fuel, and nature has foreseen that as a result of nutrition, which cannot provide a sufficient amount of glucose, the brain switches to an alternative source of fuel - the so-called ketone bodies.
- Ketone bodies
Three substances are called ketone bodies
- acetoacetic acid (acetoacetate)
- beta-aminobutyric acid (hydroxybutyrate)
- acetone
These substances are formed in the liver from fatty acids in a process called ketogenesis. Not very much acetone is formed, our main fuel is betaaminobutyric acid. It is on it for the most part that the central nervous system works during the periodlack of carbohydrates in the diet.
Is the keto diet bad or not?
Ketogenesis is a completely normal metabolic process and should not be feared. All fears come from the fact that the state of ketosis - when the body works on ketone bodies is often confused with pathological and requiring urgent interventionacidokedosis. But these things are different and now we will discuss a little what the essence is.
Ketoacidosis
What is ketoacidosis. This is almost the same as ketosis, but when it is caused not by a lack of glucose due to a lack of carbohydrates, but by a lack of insulin. I remind you that our most important hormone, insulin, is a transport agent. This is our loader whoknows how to carry glucose through the cell membrane.
When there is a lot of glucose, but there is no insulin or it does not perform its functions, the cell begins to experience energy hunger in the same way as in the case of a carbohydrate-free diet. As a result, the body produces a bunch of hormones that can break downfat (lipolytic, in this case they are called counter-insular) and the liver begins to produce ketone bodies from fatty acids. What's going on?
There is a lot of undigested glucose, there are also a lot of ketone bodies, and the kidneys are trying to get rid of excess ketones and glucose, which causes dehydration - the so-called osmotic diuresis. As a result of diuresis, electrolytes are washed out - and you remember that this is veryand it is very bad from this video, even two - the balance of electrolytes shifts towards acidification and as a result, this very ketoacidosis develops. all this requires urgent hospitalization, for the patient can easily move the horses.
It is clear that this situation is possible only in two cases
- Type 1 diabetes when the pancreas does not produce insulin
- Dehydration - diarrhea, vomiting, taking diuretics.
That is, if you are healthy, you do not have type 1 diabetes, you do not need to be afraid of ketoacidosis. In your case, the nervous system will work perfectly on ketone bodies.
So How To Use The Keto Diet
Firstand most important is to enter ketosis. And this is one of the most difficult tasks. Because in most cases - remember I told you that takeo homeostasis - people for decades eat food containing carbohydrates forthe first time - it will be stress for the body. The carcass is not used to this and in a day or two you will not enter ketosis. It takes time. First, the body will eat up the remaining glucose and glycogen. Then he will try to get glucose using gluconeogenesisfrom amino acids, glycerin, lactic acid. And only when it becomes completely out of mogota will it start the process of ketogenesis and, with a creak, will begin to drag the power supply system of the central nervous system onto new rails. Remember - the carcass really does not likeviolation of homeostasis and resists as best he can.
This is the first time the most difficult - you are stupid, angry, you have no strength, your brain refuses to work, your head is spinning - and a bunch of other delights. And this state lasts - for everyone in different ways - but maybe up to two or three weeks.
Second. To enter ketosis, you need to chop off carbohydrates or leave them at a minimum - and this is another difficulty. There are organs that cannot use fatty acids or ketone bodies for energy. They need glucose and only glucose- this is the intestinal epithelium, the vascular endothelium, the lens of the eye, the adrenal cortex, something else - I do not remember. So you can't leave them without glucose. The carcass will get glucose for them by gluconeogenesis either from your muscles or from a minimum of carbohydrates, coming with food. But that's just the point - remember about homeostasis - the desire to maintain balance at any cost - entering ketosis is difficult, but falling out of it is easy. And then hello the fat stores on the sides back.
Third- to enter ketosis, you need to eat a lot of fat and in no case go overboard with protein !!!! And this is also very difficult to control. Because with an excess of protein in the diet - with the help of the same gluconeogenesis, a carcass from iturgently rivets glucose - and you will again fall out of such a hard-won state of ketosis. If there is too little protein, muscles will gradually be lost. And catching this balance is very, very difficult for a beginner. Everything is exactly the same with fatsjust - 80% of the diet should be fats.
Fourth- the difficulty in assessing whether we have entered ketosis or not.
- Testing for the presence of acetone in urine with strips does not make sense. We may be in ketosis, but there will be no acetone in our urine.
- An analysis of blood with a glucometer with special strips for ketone bodies is possible, but these strips are not cheap.
- Finally, there are special instruments for the determination of acetone in the breath. They were invented for epileptics because the ketogenic diet is good for dealing with epileptic seizures - but they also cost about $ 100.
And finally, if you do decide to try the keto diet, how do you compose your diet?
- protein - 1. 5-2 grams per body weight. This is conditional.
- The rest is fat.
Which foods are suitable for the keto diet?
- eggs with yolk
- all cheeses
- fat cottage cheese
- sour cream
- lard
- pork
- nuts
- salmon
- trout
- salmon
- lamb