If, twenty or thirty years ago, someone had put all the products in two baskets, classifying them according to the principle of greatest and least usefulness, today they would have to carry out a comprehensive review of them. The strangest story happened during this time with the fat: the main recent enemy of humanity is not only completely rehabilitated, but almost declared the savior of him. Is that so? understands nutritionist Chris More.
Recently, a patient admitted to me that she and her husband eat almost a kilogram of bacon a week - three slices for breakfast and then two more with salad for lunch. I have been working as a nutritionist for more than twenty years, and it would seem that nothing would surprise me, but then I still couldn't resist and asked: why? The patient said that her husband watched a TV show about the ketogenic diet and decided to give it a try. Six months on bacon, and now the husband has lost nine kilograms and, according to his wife, he is almost overwhelmed with energy.
Increasingly, I hear from people about the miracles the ketogenic diet does for them. They claim that it burns fat in the body, energizes and defeats diseases, and that from now on it is not only possible, but also necessary to eat as much bacon as you want. But all your enthusiasm needs at least some serious proof: is a ketogenic diet that doesn't restrict animal fat intake really that good?
The ketogenic diet is a low carbohydrate diet high in fat and moderate in protein. It was originally used in the treatment of epilepsy in children by increasing the level of ketone bodies in the blood.
What is ketosis?
Let's start with the name of the diet: where did this "keto" come from? When the body is desperately short of carbohydrates, for example due to diabetes or prolonged hunger, it has to break down its own fat more actively than usual for energy. Ketosis develops: metabolism is disrupted and more ketone bodies than necessary accumulate in tissues. Ketone bodies are products of fat metabolism. They are produced by the liver when insulin levels drop in the blood.
"The liver produces ketone bodies all the time, but their levels depend on the carbohydrates and proteins you eat, the body needs both, " explains Jeff Volek, a professor at Ohio University.
The breakdown of fat in the body of a healthy person and the formation of ketone bodies is a normal process, it is called ketogenesis. Unlike ketosis, ketogenesis does not lead to dramatic weight loss. Ketosis is a pathology that, in addition to diabetes and prolonged fasting, can be caused by a ketogenic diet, since it almost excludes carbohydrate foods from the diet. A person who has developed ketosis loses weight dramatically, as well as due to some other conditions.
The ketogenic diet forces the body to use fat as its main source of energy. This role is typically played by carbohydrates which, when taken with food, are processed into glucose, which is extremely important for nutrition and brain function. However, if the diet is low in carbohydrates, the liver converts fat into fatty acids and ketone bodies. Ketone bodies enter the brain and are used as an energy source instead of glucose. An increase in the level of ketone bodies in the blood (ketosis) leads to a decrease in the frequency of epileptic seizures.
On the ketogenic diet, the main part of the daily diet, 60 to 80%, is fat, protein - about 15%, and only the remaining 10% is carbohydrates (this is about half of a small bun). At first glance, it looks like the Atkins diet, but the ketogenic diet involves more severe carbohydrate restriction, according to Spencer Nadolsky, author of The Fat Loss Prescription. Various theorists generally claim that the less carbohydrates we eat, the more fat our body burns, and for this reason, metabolism improves, immunity increases, and in general, various miracles begin to happen in our body.
However, in everyday life, we get about half of calories, and not one-tenth of them from carbohydrates. So, in essence, the question is: can your body stay in ketosis long enough to achieve the promised nirvana without serious health consequences? Are you going to literally freak out on fat?
Is The Ketogenic Diet Right For You?
It may sound strange, but the best diet for you is the one you are used to following. For Volek, who's been in keto for twenty years, she's good, but is she right for you? Unfortunately, there is no research on what happens in the body of a person who has been on the keto diet for a long time. During the A to Z Weight Loss Study, scientists studied the Atkins, Zone, LEARN, and some other diets, but in the study, women consumed 25% to 35% of carbohydrates; this is not even close to the 10% that is recommended to stick to the ketogenic diet.
The only thing that is known for sure: with the ketogenic diet you will really lose weight. In Italy, in 2015, they studied the performance of people sitting on it and, on average, for three months they lost between 10 and 12 kilograms. A year earlier in Spain, it turned out that in a year in this way about 20 kilograms can be lost. It is true that during the following year, the subjects often returned to the weight they had before the experiment, as soon as they stopped the rigid diet.
What are you going to eat if you decide to try it? First and second, that bacon. Of the rest of the products, it does not suit you much. Starchy vegetables (potatoes, squash, corn) are strictly prohibited, like most fruits. You will also have to forget about milk, beans, rice, and pasta.
The ketogenic diet is difficult to follow and can be dangerous for some people. "Extreme diets, particularly the keto diet, are strictly contraindicated in people with neurodegenerative diseases such as epilepsy, " says Dr. Alan Aragon.
The ketogenic diet is considered optimal in society for weight loss. However, according to scientific evidence, the effect of weight loss shortly after switching to a ketogenic diet is caused by a decrease in the amount of water in the body, and the amount of body fat is influenced solely by energy balance . To lose weight, the energy supplied with food must be less than that expended in physical activity. One of the benefits of the ketogenic diet, like other low-carb diets, is that the ketosis that occurs with low-carb diets contributes to weight loss in obesity. The difference in calories ingested can be up to 1, 000 kilocalories per day compared to low-fat diets. The effect of ketogenic diets is highly dependent on the protein content of the diet.
Can I take medicines that cause an increase in ketone bodies? In no case. Don't listen to those "consultants" who will assure you that even without any diet, you can induce ketosis with the help of special medications.
So is the ketogenic diet right for you or not? If you are an extreme athlete who is ready to experiment with your body, if you like taking risks and quick results are important to you, give it a try! If you just want to lose a few pounds and have already encountered the "yo-yo effect" in the past (when, after a strict diet, a person breaks down and gains more weight than they managed to lose), then perhaps you should not risk it. However, if you approach the keto diet wisely, there are three lessons you can learn from it that will definitely come in handy.
- Reduce your intake of "empty" carbohydrates. Analyze what foods you get the most from your daily carbohydrate intake: if they come from fruits rich in fiber and antioxidants, that's fine, but if your carbohydrate sources are sweets, soft drinks and any food made with white flour, you know what to do - feel free to send them in the trash.
- Don't avoid fat. The passion for low-fat foods that began in the 1990s can be safely left in the past. Nothing good at that. Often times, to compensate for the lack of fat, manufacturers increase the amount of sugar in such products. Eat fatty fish like salmon, mackerel, or sardines at least twice a week. And whatever you cook, don't skimp on vegetables, especially good olive oil.
- Eat lots of vegetables. All leafy greens and greens go well with fatty and protein foods; keto diet fans eat a lot of them. And you do the same. Eat kale, spinach, bok choy, arugula, and other types of salads without restriction.
What happened to my patients with bacon? His experiments with nutrition continued exactly until his son was born. Of course, they immediately forgot about the diet (there is no time to think about it, as the young mother explained). So remember: sooner or later you'll get tired of regularly stuffing yourself with bacon and go back to normal, familiar food.
Prescriptions
Salmon and asparagus salad
Ingredients:
- 150 g of salmon fillet;
- 80 g of green asparagus;
- 1/2 head of iceberg lettuce;
- 2 eggs;
- 4 anchovy fillets;
- 5 cherry tomatoes;
- 5 large capers (or 6 to 8 small ones): take the capers in salt, not in brine, they must be washed before use;
- 1/2 medium red onion;
- 6-8 art. l. olive oil;
- 1 teaspoon cup Dijon;
- juice of half a lemon.
How to cook:
- If you've ever cooked Nicoise, you can handle this salad too. It pretty much repeats the Nice main course, only fatty salmon is taken instead of tuna, and asparagus is used instead of green beans (beans can also be used, however).
- Salmon is best cooked not in a hot pan or hot oven, but steamed or in a slow cooker - 20-30 minutes at a temperature of 80-85 degrees, not higher (otherwise protein will roll up and the fish will be difficult). But you can also pan-fry (but don't overdo it! ): The fish should be tender and retain some transparency inside.
- Cook the asparagus. It should be crispy, so don't overcook it! The cooking time depends on its size, so we do not recommend leaving the stove: asparagus cooks quickly.
- Put the disassembled iceberg on a plate (the salad should be washed, dried and broken into medium pieces), asparagus, coarsely disassembled salmon, halves of cherry tomatoes, anchovies, capers, onions, chopped into rings and hard. eggs (ideally, the yolk should not remain liquid but soft). Top the fields with olive oil sauce with Dijon mustard and lemon juice. You don't need to add salt to the dish: the anchovies and capers are already salty enough.
The ketogenic diet is used by athletes involved in sports that require endurance, such as ultramarathon, triathlon, cycling, etc. The body of athletes who follow this diet uses fat more efficiently as a source of energy and, therefore, helps to conserve glycogen stores during prolonged exertion.
Bacon and lettuce salad
Ingredients:
- 2 palm-sized lettuces
- 100 g of bacon;
- 8 sprigs of mint;
- 1 egg yolk;
- 6 tbsp. L. olive oil and a little more for frying;
- 1 tsp granular cup;
- 1 tablespoon. l. Sherry vinager.
How to cook:
- For this salad, you will have to make a slightly more complex sauce: put mint leaves and mustard in a tall glass, add egg yolk, pour sherry vinegar. Beat with a blender while adding olive oil in a fine stream.
- Cut the lettuce in half lengthwise and sauté quickly over high heat. It should be slightly caramelized, that is, acquire a golden brown color, remaining fresh and crisp on the inside. Fry the bacon over high heat without oil or in the oven until crisp. Arrange the lettuce, bacon, and sauce on a plate. Garnish with mint leaves.