Food Safety | Ketogenic diet is a "double-edged sword" and can damage your body if used incorrectly

Many people's biggest understanding of the ketogenic diet should be that it can help you lose weight quickly. It is a diet structure that advocates high fat, low carbon water, and moderate protein, and is highly praised by some people who are trying to lose weight. What exactly is the ketogenic diet? Is it really that good?

The ketogenic diet is a double-edged sword

The ketogenic diet first appeared in the early 1920s as a special diet for treating refractory epilepsy in children. Research data shows that the ketogenic diet can stop 14% of children with epilepsy and reduce the intensity of epilepsy in about 50% of children. The clinical effect is quite impressive, and then this therapy spread. Gradually, people discovered that the ketogenic diet has another use - weight loss. By limiting the intake of carbohydrates, the burning of one's own fat is accelerated, achieving the effect of fat loss.

In fact, more and more scientific evidence shows that compared with other diets, the weight loss effect brought by low-carb or ketogenic diets is only a short-term win, after which dieters will enter a bottleneck period, and the final weight loss effect is no different from other diets. Not only that, studies have shown that 50% of the energy required by the human body is best provided by carbohydrates. In the ketogenic diet, carbohydrate energy only accounts for 4% to 17% of the total calories. Staple foods and vegetables with high starch content need to be strictly restricted, which can easily bring other health risks, such as malnutrition, excessive fat intake, and ketoacidosis.

A dangerous eating pattern

Studies have shown that short-term implementation of a ketogenic diet can indeed effectively reduce weight and improve some risk indicators related to cardiovascular disease. However, there are health risks in adhering to this diet for a long time.

1. Restricting the intake of carbohydrate foods will inevitably lead to nutritional imbalance, which can easily lead to malnutrition and lack of nutrients. If it is not corrected for a long time, serious health risks will occur.

2. Fat metabolism will produce ketone bodies. Excessive accumulation of ketone bodies in the blood will cause ketoacidosis, resulting in fatigue, nausea and vomiting, dehydration, shock, and a smell of rotten apples on the breath.

3. The ketogenic diet contains 70% fat, which requires a large amount of high-fat food, while a healthy diet recommends limiting cholesterol intake. If you have high cholesterol or high blood pressure, you must consult a doctor before starting a ketogenic diet.

4. A short-term ketogenic diet impairs sugar homeostasis in the body. After resuming carbohydrate intake, blood sugar rises rapidly, triggering a metabolic reaction and causing vascular cell shedding. For people at high risk of cardiovascular disease, once blood sugar surges after using a ketogenic diet, it will have an adverse effect on blood vessels.

Therefore, the ketogenic diet has both advantages and disadvantages. For people who have difficulty losing weight, they may try it for a short period of time under the supervision of professionals, but for ordinary people, do not rush into the ketogenic diet.

Experts interviewed: Gu Zhongyi, Director of Beijing Nutritionist Association and Beijing Nutrition Society