Can you go Ketogenic forever?
No carbs? High protein? Starving for straight up 16 hours to eating only a bowl of cabbage soup for every meal for an entire day, such FAD diets1 have been trending over the internet ever since and are supposedly our so-called escape to being healthy again and be or look a certain way.
Not surprisingly enough, Ketogenic diet2 also belongs to the same breed of other low-carb fad diets like Atikins, Paleo and Zone diet which gives a motivation boost about doing something different to anyone who starts with these diets for weight loss journey or being healthy in general.
If you have never heard of what a Keto-diet is, here is the story cut short. A ketogenic diet is a high fat (55–60%), moderate protein (30–35%) and extremely low carbohydrate (5–10%) diet which forces the body to undergo ketosis to build up ketone bodies in their bloodstream which means that the body uses its own fat-burning system to use fat as an energy source. Sounds amazing right? So what is all the fuss about? Why are some all for it and others raving about its downsides?
(For a quick list of key takeaway, check towards the end of the article)
Keto diet has always been marketed and portrayed as a no-stop miracle for weight loss and as much as this diet has been exploited by the food industry, it has become one of the most followed popular diet trends among health influencers and fitness freaks.
Ketogenic diet wasn’t meant for weight loss. It was meant for the treatment of epilepsy and has proven to reduce the number of seizures experienced per day in the long-term. Since ketosis is not a normal state of the body to be in, it should not be done without the supervision of a doctor or a registered dietician.
“According to a recent research3 study that followed 432179 adults for 25 years, associated a greater risk of mortality with both high and low carbohydrate intake specifically people who consumed more than 70% or less than 40% of calories coming from carbohydrates alone than moderate intake.”
Getting enough salt and other minerals are important when you are starting a ketogenic diet inorder to compensate for the shift in the water and mineral balance. A low-carbohydrate diet eliminates a wide variety of fruits, vegetables and grains, which may result into important nutrient and mineral deficiencies and also lead to constipation due to lack of fibre in the diet which mainly comes from fibrous foods like grains, legumes, fruit and vegetables. Constipation due to lack of fibrous foods is also because most keto-foods are rich in fat or protein.
A keto diet is certainly not a healthy & sustainable diet to follow in the long run or an alternative to healthy eating habits i.e. eating real whole nutritious food, no wonder why it is considered a fad. When you undergo a keto diet and come back to a normal eating pattern, the body starts using carbohydrates again as the fuel and the lost weight comes back.
“Keto is not a magic-bullet for weight loss, the truth being that we do not have long term evidence proving that ketogenic diet can have sustainable long term health benefits.”
Not depriving oneself but following a balanced diet and adding complex carbohydrate sources along with essential fats and good quality protein is important for optimal weight management. Inorder to burn body fat, strength conditioning and exercise is ideal.
If you still want to opt for a keto diet, make sure to add good fats in your diet coming from nuts, seeds and oils like olive oil, sunflower oil, mustard oil etc. Keep in mind that, gobbling down one keto burger after another just because it is low in carbs and high in fats will not bring you any closer to weight loss. Portion control or moderation still needs to be maintained. Look out for food labels and ingredients list to check that no hidden source of sugar is added along with the net carbohydrate content of the product and include healthy carbohydrate sources coming from whole grains and legumes in your diet. You can consult a dietitian for a customized keto diet plan to help manage your meals better.
Most importantly, you should understand that your diet is supposed to be a part and parallel to your lifestyle so that it is sustainable and you get the most benefits out of it.
With that said, we should ask ourselves if we can be on a high fat diet for the rest of our lives or would we want to return back to a normal, balanced and sustainable method of eating?
Key Takeaways:
- A ketogenic diet is a high fat (55–60%), moderate protein (30–35%) and low carbohydrate (5–10%) diet which forces the body to undergo ketosis to build up ketone bodies in their bloodstream so that the body uses its own fat-burning system to use fat as an energy source.
- It is important to remember that a keto diet is not a healthy and sustainable diet to follow in the long run and cannot replace the benefits of eating a well-balanced diet by including all food groups.
- Truth being that we do not have long term evidence proving that ketogenic diet can have sustainable long term health benefits.
- Following a balanced diet by addition of complex carbohydrate sources, essential fats, good quality protein along with regular exercise is important for sustained weight management.
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