The ketogenic diet is becoming more and more popular every year, due to the fact that many celebrities are doing it. Mama June, Jenna Jameson, Halle Berry – they all have tried it and claimed that it works. The fact is that keto isn’t the best for our bodies and here’s why. Let’s elaborate on why keto is bad.
What is keto?
It is a weight-loss plan, which tells you to eat only 50 grams of carbs a day. We usually do about 300, so it’s not too much. The goal is to eat a lot of fat to get into the state of ketosis. That means that you are burning the actual fat, not sugar to get the energy to live. There is a lot of controversy around this diet, as there are lots of unpleasant side effects and health risks. Keto is just unhealthy and we should stop believing in what celebrities are telling us.
The “keto flu”
Why keto is bad? Because ketosis makes people sick. It is as simple as that. You might vomit, get some gastrointestinal distress and lots of lethargy. This is called the keto flu and about 25 percent of people experience it. The whole sickness is fairly unpleasant but it passes after few days. Nonetheless, it happens and it’s a huge disadvantage. The fact that this diet makes us sick shows that it cannot be good for us. The reason why it happens is that the body runs out of sugar as a source of energy and has to start using fat. The transition is very unpleasant and it gives us those symptoms. If we want to feel better, we should drink plenty of water and get enough sleep but even this may not help for some people. Generally, if you want to be in ketosis, you have to suffer for a couple of days.
Diarrhea
The diarrhea is another reason why keto is bad. A lot of people claim that they have to constantly run to the bathroom while in ketosis. This may happen because go the gallbladder being overwhelmed as it has to process a lot of fat at once. Another reason may be the lack of fiber in the diet. You don’t get much of it when you’re on keto, because fiber is usually in foods with lots of carbs, like veggies or oats. Therefore, if you want to do keto, you have to be prepared that you will be running to the toilet constantly.
Troubles working out
A lot of people who do sports professionally and tried keto, claim that the diet made their athletic performance way worse. They feel more tired and have less motivation to work out. What is more, if they have the keto flu, they are unable to do anything for a couple of days. There was an experiment in the Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness which proved that those who did a high carb diet did better at sports than those who did keto. The fact is that keto will make you lose weight but before you do so, you will feel awful and your athletic performance will be horrible.
You’ll gain it all back
According to the doctors, you should not follow keto for more than 90 days, due to the fact that the diet is so restrictive. Therefore, you can do keto for three months, and then you should go back to a healthy diet plan. Unfortunately, the statistics show that a lot of people regain the weight they have lost right after the diet is done. It is almost guaranteed that the pounds will come back to you. It is because of the fact that you will finally be able to eat carbs and you will eat a lot of them. So why keto is bad? Because all restrictive diets like that are bad.
The risk of heart disease and diabetes
Here is where the real dangerous stuff begins. You may do keto the right way and eat healthy veggies and good animal protein, but a lot of people choose not to. They see keto as an opportunity to have tons of butter, bacon and fried meals. This is a short way to a heart attack. Therefore, trying this diet without the guidance of a professional doctor can be very dangerous. We should at least talk about it with a dietitian. Diets like that will raise your cholesterol levels and, in the longer term, will lead to different diseases like diabetes. Keto is very bad for your heart, so maybe you should think about it twice.
