Keto diet comes with lots of advantages. The diet can help people lose weight, manage diabetes and more. Some experts have also found out that the diet can increase longevity and improve memory. On the other hand, the diet may also be accompanied by its own limitations.
Before you give it a try, you need to know what it involves; its pros and cons. Let’s have a close look.
There are 9 Pros & 6 Cons of Ketogenic Diet You Should Know.
Pros of the Ketogenic Diet
Choosing the ketogenic diet plan can provide you with significant benefits. These benefits include:
1. It helps in quick weight loss
Keto is said to be the best diet when it comes to weight loss because of its ability to oxidize fatty acids in the liver. This fat oxidation leads to the production of ketones, which can help minimize cravings and increase feelings of satisfied, ultimately helping you stay on track and within your recommended daily calorie count.
2. It regulates blood sugar levels
Low consumption of carbs can help people who have type II diabetes. Through eliminating carbohydrates intake from your diet, you prevent an overload of insulin release, hence helping in balancing the blood sugar levels. This can reverse your insulin resistance, which is the primary source of symptoms in those suffering from diabetes.
3. It reduces the risk associated with heart diseases
High blood pressure is a significant risk factor associated with many heart problems such as hypertension. Keto diet helps you 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 getting these diseases.
4. Can help to treat traumatic brain tumor
The keto diet has been widely used for patients with different traumatic brain issues. Since it is associated with high-fat consumption, this improves the mitochondrial function and creates a neuroprotective effect in your brain. It can also help treat schizophrenia problems, normalizing the thoughts and reducing delusions or hallucinations.
5. It helps to reduce the insulin levels in the body
Insulin is a crucial hormone that helps move glucose from the bloodstream to the muscles and tissues. Higher levels of circulating insulin increase inflammation. The ketogenic diet can help to reduce insulin levels, hence helping to potentially reduce inflammation in the body.
6. It leads to eating more healthy fat
Fat is vital to our health. One of the key benefits of this diet is increased consumption of fat, especially if it’s healthy fat from avocado, nuts, or wild fatty fish.
7. Enhance fertility in women
The diet has been suggested to be the cheapest way to treat fertility issues in women. This is because it has a significant benefit in weight loss and diabetes prevention which are major contributing factors to fertility issues among women.
8. It gives a great way of detoxification from sugar
Due to the fact that this diet allows only a small amount of carbs consumption, you will end up cutting out intake of really sugary foods.
9. Help to enhance satisfaction
One of the best things about the Keto diet is that you won’t feel hunger pangs. The increased fat during ketosis helps people to minimize carb cravings hence, making them feel fully satisfied during the day and eliminates the need for snacking.
Cons of the Ketogenic Diet
1. The plan can be quite difficult to follow
Keto diet plan is quite difficult to follow and maintain. Since the plan contains a greater portion of fat and a very small amount of carbs and protein, you will need to plan and calculate well your every single meal. For most people, this is the hardest part.
2. Low carb diet may sometimes be uncomfortable
When on a Keto diet, you might experience some side effects (Keto flu) at the initial stage such as headaches, lack of concentration and fatigue.
It’s important to stay hydrated during this plan as it uses up your water stores. Avoid strenuous exercise while you’re getting used to this diet, also make sure you get enough sleep.
3. Won’t be eating as much gut and heart friendly
Keto diet is high in heart-healthy fats, depending on the plan you choose. However, it is often low in fiber. It can also be insufficient in plant-based healthy nutrients. This is due to the fact that many foods that contain fiber nutrients also contain more carbohydrates than permitted on Keto diet plan.
4. This plan can lead to fatigue
This plan is not meant for long-term use. Because the keto diet eliminates or drastically reduces the number of carbohydrates in the body, making your body to break down sugars so as it uses it as the main source of energy. Although your body gets used to the shock after some days, the initial stages of the plan can be very hard and dangerous since your body is adjusting to the carb restrictions, which leads to fatigue.
5. No cheat meals are allowed
When going Keto, you need to be cautious about the type of food you choose as there is no room for cheating in this diet. This is because some foods especially carbs will result in a sudden spike in sugar which will bring your body out of ketosis. You can, however, indulge in Keto snacks that are rich in healthy fats or protein. Some of the recommended Keto snacks include:
6. The plan is for medical use only
The Keto diet is mostly recommended for medical use, in order to improve the health especially for those suffering from conditions such as diabetes and epilepsy. For these people, lowering blood sugar levels through the removal of carbs, particularly processed ones, can help in preventing serious health problems.
Verdict
There are so many different diet plans coming up today and it can be challenging to keep track of what's good and bad. Chances are also high that you will find mixed reviews online. While some experts advocates on the benefits, others shine a light on what's bad. Therefore, having a basic knowledge of the pros and cons of any diet that you plan to implement is very important for your health. When the pros and cons of the Keto diet are compared, you can conclude that the Keto diet is beneficial and comes with potential health benefits.