What is the keto diet?

The Keto Diet is a way of eating that aims to get your body into a state of ketosis. Usually our body burns glucose to provide us with energy. We get this glucose from eating carbohydrates such as fruit, vegetables and grains. The Keto Diet restricts these types of foods so that the body will search for an alternative fuel source – fat. 

When the body has no glucose to use, it will turn to fat as it’s next preferred form of energy. The breakdown of fats, which occurs in the liver, results in the production of chemicals called ketones. This process is called “ketosis” and is what the Keto Diet is trying to achieve. 

The theory behind the Keto Diet becoming so popular in recent years is that if we flip our body into ketosis, it will readily burn fat on our body for fuel, enabling fast weight loss. Eating low levels of glucose containing foods, especially sugars, has also shown to benefit conditions such as type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance and polycystic ovarian syndrome. 

Interestingly, there has also been some research done on the benefits of the Keto Diet for conditions such as epilepsy. However, with the good, comes some negatives too. As this is a very restrictive diet, it is not suitable for everyone and in particular for women, it can alter your menstrual cycle – see our blog: Will Going Keto Affect Your Hormones

What to expect? 

It takes approximately 2-4 days to enter into a ketosis state. Some of the signs you may experience from ketosis and the Keto Diet are:

• Bad or sweet breath
• Reduced appetite
• Sweet smelling urine
• Headaches
• Constipation
• Increased thirst
• Muscle cramps
• Rapid weight loss
• Reduced or increased energy
• “Keto Flu” 

If you accumulate too many ketones, your body can become toxic which is why you can experience some of these negative side effects and this shouldn’t be a long term diet. Most of the weight loss benefits will be achieved within 12 months and following the diet any longer will not usually lead to further results. 

This diet is not safe for everyone so check in with your health care professional to see if it is right for you.

So, what can you eat? 

A breakdown of your main macro-nutrients looks something like:

70% energy from fat

25% energy from protein

5% energy from carbohydrates

Things to eat:

• Meat
• Poultry
• Seafood
• Full fat dairy
• Eggs
• Oil
• Avocado 
• Coconut products
• Nuts and seeds
• Watery and lower carb vegetables (spinach, tomato)

Things to avoid:

• Fruit
• Starchy and higher carb vegetables (potato, beetroot)
• Pasta, bread
• Juice
• Rice
• Confectionary
• Honey
• Low fat dairy 

For meal ideas, we recommend checking out The Healthful Pursuit and selecting “keto” or Mad Creations Hub websites for recipes. 

Are you interested in following the keto diet or would you like to know more? Book a free base chat with one of our practitioners to learn more.