Keto diet: what is it and who is it suitable for?

If twenty or thirty years ago someone had put all the products in two baskets, ordering them according to the principle of maximum and minimum usefulness, today it would be necessary to make a thorough review. The strangest story happened during this time with fat: humanity's recent main enemy has not only been fully rehabilitated, but has almost declared his savior. That's right, nutritionist Chris More understands.

Recently, a patient admitted to me that she and her husband eat nearly a pound of bacon a week: three slices for breakfast and then two more with salad for lunch. I have been working as a nutritionist for over twenty years, and it would seem that nothing would surprise me, but then I still haven't resisted and asked: why? The patient said her husband watched a TV show on the keto diet and they decided to try it. Six months of bacon - and now the husband has lost nine kilograms and, according to his wife, is almost bursting with energy overwhelming him.

I hear more and more from people about the miracles the keto diet does to them. They claim that it burns fat in the body, gives energy and overcomes disease, and that from now on it is not only possible but also necessary to eat all the bacon you want. But all their excitement needs at least some serious test: Is a keto diet that doesn't limit animal fat intake really that good?

The ketogenic diet is a low-carb, high-fat, moderate-protein diet. It was originally used in the treatment of epilepsy in children by increasing the level of ketone bodies in the blood.

What is ketosis?

Let's start with the name of the diet: where does this "keto" come from? When the body is desperately short of carbohydrates, for example due to diabetes or prolonged hunger, it has to break down its fat more actively than usual for energy. Ketosis develops: metabolism is disrupted and more ketone bodies accumulate in the tissues than necessary. Ketone bodies are products of fat metabolism. They are produced by the liver when insulin levels drop in the blood.

"The liver continually produces ketone bodies, but their levels depend on the carbohydrates and proteins you eat - the body needs both, " says Jeff Volek, a professor at the University of Ohio.

The breakdown of fat in the body of a healthy person and the formation of ketone bodies is a normal process, it is called ketogenesis. Unlike ketosis, ketogenesis does not lead to drastic weight loss. Ketosis is a disease that, in addition to diabetes and prolonged fasting, can be caused by a ketogenic diet, since it excludes almost all carbohydrates from the diet. A person who has developed ketosis loses weight dramatically, as well as due to other conditions.

The ketogenic diet forces the body to use fat as its main source of energy. Usually, this role is played by carbohydrates which, when taken with food, are transformed into glucose, which is extremely important for nutrition and brain functioning. However, if the diet is low in carbohydrates, the liver converts fat into fatty acids and ketone bodies. Ketone bodies enter the brain and are used as an energy source instead of glucose. An increase in the level of ketone bodies in the blood (ketosis) leads to a decrease in the frequency of seizures.

In the ketogenic diet, the main part of the daily diet - 60 to 80% - is made up of fats, proteins - about 15% and only the remaining 10% are carbohydrates (this is about half of a sandwich). At first glance, it looks like the Atkins diet, but the keto diet involves tighter carbohydrate restriction, according to Spencer Nadolsky, author of The Fat Loss Prescription. A number of theorists generally assure that the less carbohydrates we eat, the more fat our body burns, and because of this, metabolism improves, immunity increases - and in general, various miracles begin to happen to our body.

However, in ordinary life, we get about half of the calories and not a tenth of them from carbohydrates. So, in essence, the question is, can your body be in ketosis long enough to achieve the promised nirvana without serious health consequences? Will you literally start freaking out with fat?

Is the keto diet for you?

It may sound strange, but the best diet for you is the one you're used to following. For Volek, who has been on keto for 20 years, she's good, but is she right for you? Unfortunately, there is no research on what goes on in the body of a person who has been on the ketogenic diet for a long time. During the A to Z weight loss study, scientists studied the Atkins diet, Zone, LEARN, and a few other diets, but in the study, female subjects consumed 25 to 35 percent carbohydrates - this isn't not even close to the 10% that recommends limiting yourself to the ketogenic diet.

The only sure thing is that with the keto diet you will really lose weight. In Italy, in 2015, they studied the performance of people sitting on it, and on average in three months they lost about 10-12 kilograms. A year earlier in Spain, it turned out that in a year in this way you can lose about 20 kilograms. True, over the course of the following year, subjects often returned to their pre-experiment weight as soon as they abandoned the strict diet.

What will you eat if you decide to try it? First and second, that bacon. After all, not much will suit you. Starchy vegetables - potatoes, squash, corn - are strictly prohibited, like most fruits. To forget also milk, beans, rice and pasta.

The keto diet is difficult to follow and can be dangerous for some. "Extreme diets, especially the keto diet, are strictly contraindicated in people with neurodegenerative diseases such as epilepsy, " says Dr. Alan Aragon.

The ketogenic diet is considered optimal in society for weight loss. However, according to scientific evidence, the effect of weight loss immediately after switching to a ketogenic diet is caused by a decrease in the amount of water in the body and the amount of body fat is influenced solely by the energy balance. For weight loss, the energy supplied with food should be less than that expended in physical activity. One of the benefits of the ketogenic diet, like other low-carb diets, is that the ketosis that occurs with low-carb diets contributes to weight loss in obesity. The difference in calories consumed can be up to a thousand kilocalories per day compared to low-fat diets. The effect of ketogenic diets is highly dependent on the protein content of the diet.

Can I take drugs that cause an increase in ketone bodies? In no case. Do not listen to those "consultants" who will assure you that even without any diet, you can induce ketosis with the help of special medications.

So is the keto diet right for you or not? If you are an extreme athlete ready to experiment with your body, if you like to take risks and fast results are important to you, then give it a try! If you just want to lose a few pounds and have experienced the "yo-yo effect" in the past (when, after a strict diet, a person breaks down and gains more weight than they managed to lose), then maybe you shouldn't take the risk. However, if you approach the keto diet wisely, there are three lessons you can learn from it that are sure to come in handy.

1. Reduce your intake of "empty" carbohydrates. Analyze which foods you get the most from your daily carbohydrate intake - if it comes from fruit rich in fiber and antioxidants, then that's fine, but if your carbohydrate sources are candy, soda, and any white flour food, you know what. do: feel free to send them to the trash.
2. Don't avoid fat. The passion for low-fat foods that began in the 1990s can easily be left in the past. Nothing good about that. Often, to compensate for the lack of fat, manufacturers increase the amount of sugar in such products. Eat fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, or sardines at least twice a week. And whatever you cook, don't skimp on vegetables, especially good ones - olive oil.
3. Eat lots of vegetables. All greens and leafy greens go well with fatty and protein foods - fans of the ketogenic diet eat plenty of them. And you do the same. Eat kale, spinach, bok choy, arugula, and other types of salad without restrictions.

What happened to my bacon patients? Their experiments with nutrition continued right up to the time their baby was born. Of course, they quickly forgot about the diet (no time to think about it, as the young mother explained). She then she remembers: sooner or later you will get tired of filling yourself with bacon regularly and you will return to normal and familiar food.

Recipes

Salmon and asparagus salad

Ingrediants:

• 150 g of salmon fillet;
• 80 g of green asparagus;
• 1/2 head of iceberg lettuce;
• 2 eggs;
• 4 anchovy fillets;
• 5 cherry tomatoes;
• 5 large capers (or 6-8 small ones) - take capers in salt, not in brine, they must be washed before use;
• 1/2 medium-sized red onion;
• 6-8 arts. L. olive oil;
• 1 teaspoon Dijon bee;
• juice of half a lemon.

How to cook:

1. If you've ever cooked Nicoise, you can handle this salad too. The main dish of Nice is practically repeated, only fatty salmon is taken instead of tuna, and asparagus is used instead of green beans (but beans can also be used).
2. Salmon is best cooked not in a hot pan or hot oven, but steamed or in a slow cooker: 20-30 minutes at a temperature of 80-85 degrees, not higher (otherwise the proteins will curl and the fish will get hard). But you can also fry in a pan (just don't overdo it! ) - the fish should be tender and keep some transparency inside.
3. Cook the asparagus. It must be crunchy, so don't overcook it! The cooking time depends on its size, so we do not recommend leaving the stove - asparagus cooks quickly.
4. Put the disassembled iceberg on a plate (the salad must be washed, dried and cut into medium pieces), the asparagus, the salmon disassembled into large pieces, the halves of the cherry tomatoes, the anchovies, the capers, the onions cut into rings and hard-boiled eggs (ideally the yolk should not remain liquid but soft). Top of the field with olive oil sauce with Dijon mustard and lemon juice. It is not necessary to salt the dish: anchovies and capers are already salty enough.

The ketogenic diet is used by athletes involved in maintaining sports that require endurance, such as ultramarathon, triathlon, cycling, etc. The body of athletes who adhere to this diet uses fat more efficiently as an energy source and thus helps to conserve glycogen stores during prolonged exertion.

Bacon and lettuce salad

Ingrediants:

• 2 palm-sized heads of lettuce
• 100 g of bacon;
• 8 sprigs of mint;
• 1 egg yolk;
• 6 tbsp. L. olive oil and a little more for frying;
• 1 teaspoon granular bee;
• 1 tablespoon. L. sherry vinegar.

How to cook:

1. For this salad you will need to prepare a slightly more complex sauce: put the mint leaves and mustard in a tall glass, add the egg yolk, sprinkle with the sherry vinegar. Blend with a blender while adding the olive oil slowly.
2. Cut the lettuce in half lengthwise and brown it quickly over high heat. It must caramelize slightly, that is, acquire a golden brown color, remaining fresh and crunchy inside. Fry the bacon over high heat without oil or in the oven until crisp. Place the lettuce, bacon and salsa on a plate. Garnish with mint leaves.