Keto Diet - Side Effects!

The keto diet promises quick weight loss and more. But there can be negative side effects and even serious health consequences for those who are unaware.

*The keto diet is an ultra-low-carb and high-fat diet that restricts total carbohydrate numbers to just 20 or 30 net grams of carbohydrate per day. That’s the equivalent of a single piece of fruit or half a bagel. When you cut carbs, your body’s preferred source of energy, you require your body to suddenly shift to fat for fuel. This raises blood levels of ketones and puts you in a state of ketosis—hence the name “keto diet.” Once this shift, happens, you will lose weight, but you may also have experienced so negative side effects. This is commonly referred to as the keto “flu.”During your first week of keto, you may experience flu-like symptoms such as aches, cramping, fatigue, diarrhoea, constipation, general weakness, and a skin rash. This is actually a side effect of water and electrolyte loss and is likely indicative of dehydration. When you turn to fat for fuel, you lose more water and electrolytes in your urine due to a decrease in your body’s insulin levels and a loss of muscle glycogen. (When you're in ketosis, you’ll use muscle glycogen for energy first.)

*Once ketosis is established, most people experience more stable and lower blood sugar levels. Low-carb diets can be an effective way for people with type 2 diabetes to get a handle on glycemic control—and carb monitoring has long been thought to be an effective way to control blood sugar—though one study concluded low-carb diets are not necessarily a better long-term strategy than other diets. Anecdotal evidence abounds from people with type 2 diabetes who have used the keto diet to stabilize their blood sugar and were able to quit taking their diabetes medication. But it’s not recommended that people with diabetes begin the keto diet without first talking to their doctor.

*The low-carb, high-fat approach to the keto diet limits the types of foods you can have, and entire food groups are eliminated entirely. Beans, legumes, and whole grains are out, as are many fruits and vegetables. Many of these foods carry vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients you can’t get from any other source, and without them, you may start to experience nutritional deficiencies. “Keto is not a great long-term diet, as it is not a balanced diet,” says Nancy Rahnama, MD, MS, internal medicine and bariatric specialist in Los Angeles. “A diet that is devoid of fruit and vegetables will result in long-term micronutrient deficiencies that can have other consequences. The keto diet can be used for short-term fat loss, as long as it is under medical supervision.”

*A number of studies suggest keto can disrupt the balance of good and bad bacteria in your GI tract (a condition called dysbiosis) due to high saturated fat intake and eating less fibre. Diets lacking in prebiotic fibre decrease probiotic, "friendly" bacteria as a result. Since the GI tract is considered the "bodyguard" of your immune system, this may impact your gut-brain connection, immune function, and chronic disease risk. The high-fat intake required for ketosis may change the structure of LDL ("bad") cholesterol and lipoproteins, which could induce inflammation over time. Chronic inflammation is a biological state in which your body's cells work overtime to get their regular job done. Healthcare professionals can ID inflammation through blood work by looking for signs of oxidative stress (a.k.a. the damage done by free radicals to organ tissues).

*If you can’t maintain any eating plan forever due to its level of restriction and burden, it can lead to weight cycling — the process by which you gain a lot of weight and lose a lot of weight when "dieting" versus when you’re off of a diet. That can lead to increased chronic disease risk, not to mention how it can make weight loss more difficult the more often you do it. The ketogenic state, in particular, can increase the hormones that make you feel full and decrease the hormones that make you feel hungry. Sounds great, right? Well, once you’re off the keto diet, the appetite-suppressing hormones will increase significantly from your baseline. Meaning that you’ll likely feel even hungrier than you did before you started!