The low-carbohydrate keto diet was once again listed as the most popular diet in the United States by a recent survey of registered dietitians. It's fat and plenty of it that fuels this diet, all the way up to a hefty 90% of one's daily calories.
With before and after pictures, the diet's fans flood social media, crediting the diet for life-altering weight loss. Without the bun, they swirl butter into their food, stock up on cheese, and enjoy lonely burgers. When the body starts to use fat instead of glucose as its main energy source, foods like whole grains, legumes, fruits, and starchy vegetables are mostly forced off the menu as devotees aim for ketosis.
But does it work for weight loss?
Yes. It definitely seems to be that way in the short term. According to a recent literature analysis of low-carb diets by the National Lipid Association, there is evidence within the first two to six months that a relatively low-carbohydrate diet will help you lose more weight than the regular high-carb, low-fat diet.
By 12 months, this benefit is effectively gone. After that, between those two common diet schemes, weight loss appears to equalize. Before switching to a carb intake that you can stick to for the longer term, keto is best used to kick-start a diet.
How long would it take for effects on the keto diet to be seen?
The keto diet tends to yield swift results: it can look like the first pounds fall off. It may be attractive, but it's possibly just water weight. Then it is back to energy in minus energy out. If you eat 5,000 calories a day, you will definitely add weight to any diet.
But can the keto diet help to burn more calories?
There is some proof that it's possible. The research here is minimal and contradictory. It can be a very small impact, and for weight management, it may not be important. That's what was observed in one study. In it, for two months, 17 obese or overweight volunteers went into metabolic wards and tracked every last spoonful of food.
They ate a high-carb diet for the first month; they had a ketogenic one for the second, with both plans being similar in calories. In the end, while the insulin levels of the participants declined, the subjects did not lose more weight than when they had food.
Keto isn't the best way, necessarily, to lose weight or change your life. Dietitians claim that cutting back on too many carbohydrates is not necessary, as a moderately low-carb diet can also have diabetes or weight-loss advantages.
One thing is certain: Any major improvement begins with behavior. Are you at the right stage in your life to make a change?
