The ketogenic diet is a low carbohydrate with a high-fat diet and a moderated protein. The primary aim of the diet is to get your body into a metabolic state known as ketosis. Ketosis occurs when your body is producing less amount of sugar, so it needs to find an alternative fuel source. During this situation, your liver begins to process fat into ketones which become the primary fuel source of your body.With that quick knowledge, let’s see the benefits of a ketogenic diet in details.
Here are the top 9 proven keto diet health benefits.
1. Help in weight loss
Keto diet is increasingly gaining considerable attention as a potential weight-loss plan due to its low-carb diet with high-fat content and moderate intake of protein. Most people have used this diet successfully in their goals for decreasing body fat levels. And since the diet contains a high level of fat and low carbs, it serves as the primary source of energy in your body.
How it works
Ideally, the idea behind the Keto diet is a low amount of carbohydrates. When you start on the diet, your body, therefore, is completely deprived the glucose, which is the primary source for fuel for all cells in your body. This leads to a production of Ketones, which is the alternative energy for the cells. So, the body starts experiencing an extremely high fat-burning state. This follows with a drop of both your blood sugar and insulin levels. This eventually gives the fat cells the ability to release the water that has been conserved. This is the reason why at the initial stage of the Keto diet, most people will have to experience a significant drop in weight loss due to loss of excess water in the body.
Ways through which Ketosis help to speed up your weight loss goals:
2. Helps to control appetite
When your diet contains a low amount of carbohydrates, you find that most of the times you are not subjected to too much appetite; hence, you don’t end up with random cravings that cause you to eat every food you get. Many people that go on keto can do occasional fasting where they only eat during a set period of the day.
Why Keto diet is effective in controlling appetite
3. Enhance mental clarity and sharpness
Carbohydrates as an energy source are associated with problems such as rising and falling your blood sugar levels. Because this kind of energy source is not consistent in your body, it’s difficult for your brain to stay focused for long periods.
How it works
Keto energy helps to improve brain function in two ways. These include:
4. Skin improvements in those with acne
One of the leading causes of acne condition is as a result of diet and blood sugar level in the body. Consumption of a diet rich in processed and refined carbs can result in gut bacteria and lead to blood sugar fluctuations. This can have a significant influence on the health of the skin. Therefore, since the Keto diet is highly associated with a low amount of carb intake, it's not a surprise that the diet can reduce some cases of acne.
How it works
5. Optimize the energy level in the body
Because our bodies can only store so much glycogen, we need to refuel them to maintain the required energy level continually. Your body already has plenty of fat to work with and it can store more fat so that means during ketosis it has a reliable energy source that will never run out. Since it’s a ketogenic diet, it’s able to maintain blood sugar levels, providing slow, sustained all-day energy, so you remain focused, energized and fulfilled. It is also found that mitochondria prefer ketones as a source of energy. Ideally, Ketones significantly decrease free radical damage, protecting the mitochondria. Ketones can also help to create new mitochondria, optimizing energy levels. This gives you a constant supply of plenty of energy throughout the day.
6. Help to prevent heart diseases and other chronic diseases
High blood pressure is a significant risk factor for many heart problems, including hypertension and stroke. Ketogenic dieting helps to prevent heart disease that is associated with high blood pressure by keeping blood pressure levels in check. Low carbohydrates diets are effective ways to lower blood pressure and Keto diet is on the frontline of reducing your risk of heart diseases. The diet also works towards protecting your body against a wide array of chronic disease processes. The combination of anti-inflammatory effects of this diet along with improves mitochondrial function generally enables the body to heal and effectively mitigate disease.These diseases might include:
7. Helping the eyes
High blood sugar has a harmful effect on eyesight and often leads to an increased risk for cataracts. It’s therefore essential to keep blood sugar levels low which can eventually improve your eye and vision health.Keto diet can, therefore, help with maintaining vision, especially in glaucoma patients. Glaucoma is a condition in which the cells which aid in transmitting visual information to the brain get damaged. This can often lead to vision loss and in extreme cases, it can even result in blindness.
8. Help to fight type II diabetes
Type 2 diabetes is one of the most crucial challenges of our time. The Keto diet which is low in carbs and high in fat is not only known to lead to weight loss, but it has also been considered to be healthy in reversing type II diabetes.
How it works
Increased production of insulin in the blood can lead to the impaired system making the body not to use insulin properly. This leads to the development of type II diabetes. Keto diet works by removing sugar from the diet hence lowering the HbA1c count thereby maintaining a proper balance of sugar level in your body. This in turn help to prevent type II diabetes.
9. Act as anti-aging
One of the efficient ways to increase lifespan is by lowering oxidative stress in the body. It is arguable that by reducing insulin levels, oxidative stress, in turn, is decreased. Therefore, a ketogenic diet helps to minimize the insulin levels hence, allowing the formation of ketones in the body to be used as fuel.
Recommendations
Keto diet can enhance your health in many ways. From lowering your blood sugar level to improving energy output, the diet is a foundational strategy for mitigating the risk of many of the chronic diseases we are facing today. It is an excellent diet for people who are overweight, diabetic or looking to improve their metabolic health. It may be less suitable for those wishing to add large amounts of muscle or weight. And just like any other diet, it will work well if you are consistent and stick with it in the long term.