A Beginner’s Guide To The Ketogenic Diet
Many diets are available for you and one of the popular ones is known as the ketogenic diet. What is it, you might ask. If you are new to this diet, read this beginners guide to the keto diet.
It is a type of very low carb -diet. The main idea behind this particular diet is to burn fat and not glucose in order for the body to have energy. Ketones are produced in our bodies when this particular process occurs. Because of the creation of ketones, the diet was then named the ketogenic diet. It also goes by the name the keto diet.
Whenever you research a particular diet, you should know its advantages and disadvantages. After all, no diet is perfect and different people have different needs. By learning how a certain diet works, you can best find out if the diet is appropriate for your needs.
Our bodies love carbohydrates as a fuel source. These carbs are broken down into glucose. What happens when our bodies lack carbs, it turns to protein in order to get more fuel. If you then also happen to have low protein levels in your body, stored fats will be used as a source of energy. This then results into loss of weight. The ketones are a by-product of the burning of your fat cells.
To determine if a particular diet can be labelled ketogenic, we must look into how low the carbohydrates levels are in the diet. Even though moderately lowering the carbs in your diet is generally helpful, that is not what is meant when people say keto diet. There is a significant decrease of carbohydrate consumption in a keto diet.
In the majority of keto diets, people eat about 75 percent of their calories from fat sources. For carbohydrate sources, they make up only five to 10 percent of the calories consumed. The remaining portion of the total calories consumed is then taken from protein. You will find that majority of the food served in a keto diet are made up of foods like cheese, meat, oils, fatty fish and nuts.
Since the 1980s, a doctor by the name of Stephen Phinney has been conducting ketogenic diet research. He discovered that it is not a good idea for people to eat meals predominantly derived from oils. One reason could be that omega-6 fats tend to cause inflammation. He found in his experiments that people don’t do well in athletically when this occurs.
Those who want to lose weight have the tendency to eat a lot of fatty salad dressings, but this is not recommended. Coconut oil and MCT oil are instead recommended.
Everyone who wants to try this diet should speak to a dietician. This is a must given the high fat content of the keto diet.
