If you’re currently looking for weight management solutions, you’d definitely have come across the term “ketogenic (or “keto”) diet at one point or another.
Or perhaps you’re currently on a keto diet right now — just like many people are due to it’s rising popularity in the diet world.
Whatever the case, we at Better Body Co. feel it’s important for you to know the darker side of the keto diet— so you can make better informed decisions before you try it out... or simply so you can maximise the results from going on a keto diet.
From what we’ve uncovered — the keto diet can yield some pretty good results when it comes to weight loss…
But it’s definitely not for the faint-hearted.
Keto flu”, strict dietary restrictions, potential gut issues…
These are just some of the drawbacks of the keto diet.
But the good news is:
There is an elegant solution to overcome the unwanted side effects of the keto diet… so you can enjoy a healthier body without the fuss.
We’ll get to that in a minute…
But first:
The ketogenic (or “keto” for short) diet is a low-carb, high-fat diet which enables the body to produce ketones in the liver to be used as energy.
Typically, "fat" will make up about 70% of the keto diet, protein around 15-25%, and carbs only 5%.
This causes your body to burn fat as an energy source instead of carbs - resulting in positive weight loss.
Medical research have shown the keto diet yieldingnumerous health benefits[1][2][3][4], compared to other low-fat and high-carb diets, making the keto diet an extremely popular diet for those who are looking to lose weight and have better overall health.
The keto diet basically involves drastically reducing carbohydrate intake and increasing fat intake — which puts the body into a metabolic state known as ketosis.
During this state, the body focuses on breaking down fats — and this process produces ketones (hence, the name ketogenic diet).
Ketones act as little workers to supply energy to both the brain and body.
Now, here’s where it gets interesting:
After a few days or weeks on a keto diet, your body and brain are trained to burn fat for energy, instead of carbs.
In other words, the body transforms into a lean, mean, fat-burning machine.
The best part?
This means people can lose weight without needing to count calories or tracking food intake.[5]
In fact, one medical trial actually shows that women on the keto diet lost 2.2 times more weight and improved cholesterol levels than those on a calorie-restricted low-fat diet.[6]
Another medical study also found that participants on the ketogenic diet lost 3 times more weight than those on the standard diet recommended by Diabetes UK.[7]
It’s no wonder so many people have opted to go on this popular diet!
As with all diets or health regimes, the keto diet has a “darker” side — and it’s definitely not for everyone.
Here are some common "complaints" people shared with us when they went on a keto diet for the first time & from those who are currently going keto:
If you want to go on a keto diet, you’d have to say goodbye to popular carb sources like grains, beans, rice, sweets, milk, cereals… and even, potatoes and corn.
To top it all off…
Even seemingly healthy food like fruits are forbidden in the keto diet — due to their inherent fructose content.
Now, the absence of all the food mentioned above in a keto diet… can create unwanted side-effects on the body.
You’re missing out on all the beneficial vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients [8] that’s present in all of these foods.
This might cause nutrient deficiencies in the long run…
The worst part?
With the lack of fiber in a keto diet, gut health may depreciate over time.
And research indicates a healthy gut may be vital for an iron-clad immune system, clear & youthful skin and healthy digestion.
(NOTE: Learn how you can attain optimal gut health in the most natural way here)
The keto diet requires an adjustment process of 1-2 weeks in order for the body to acclimatize to the change in food intake.
During this period, people will tend to experience something that is known as the “keto flu”.
These symptoms are similar to an actual flu virus, which include headaches, fatigue, nausea… and
In fact, this is the breaking point for most people — because it’s just too much for them to bear.
These flu-like symptoms are a result of the body’s restricted carb intake, which causes the temporary loss of electrolytes, minerals and even gut bacteria.
This imbalance may potentially be detrimental to gut health — which as mentioned above — is vital for overall well-being.
However there is a way to “side-step” this issue… which we will share with you in a moment.
For now, let’s move on to...
We’re all human.
There are just some days where we feel like watching Netflix in bed with a bowl of ice-cream… have some hot chocolate on a cold day … and stuff like that.
And for most diets, it’s alright if we deviate from the “game plan” and have “cheat days” for occasional moments of indulgence like those.
Not the ketogenic diet though :(
Apparently, it’s pretty easy to knock your body out of “ketosis” if you eat one too many bites of non-keto-approved foods.
Once this happens, it can take 1-3 days for the body to re-enter the ketosis state…
And during this “transition” period, carb cravings will come back with a vengeance.
This means keto-dieters have to be extra careful counting every calorie, otherwise all the weight they’ve lost might come back swiftly.
Simply put:
If you want the luxury of “cheat days”… keto might not be the right fit for you.
People are always eager to jump onto the keto diet bandwagon, upon hearing all the weight loss success stories from keto-dieters.
What people tend to not see however is the amount of hard work and preparation that goes into making it happen. The reality is that these changes take time and effort to materialize.
And as mentioned earlier - with the strict keto dietary restrictions - it will take a ton of willpower to religious stick to the keto diet in the long run.
However, if you have the tenacity to see it through, you’ll have the trimmed waistline that you’ve always wanted :)
A word of caution though:
If left unchecked, the not-so-pleasant side-effects of keto — such as potentially detrimental effects on gut health — will always be there… despite positive outward appearances.
Fortunately, there's an elegant solution to overcome the negative side effects of the keto diet… so you can enjoy a healthier body without the fuss.
To side-step some of the potentially detrimental effects of keto on gut health, we suggest incorporating probiotics into your keto regimen :)
In case you didn't know, probiotics are live bacteria in the digestive system that keep it healthy - lowering the chances of diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and many other ailments.
The best part?
Probiotics can help the body absorb nutrients - especially fats - more efficiently... allowing the body to reap the maximum benefits from the keto diet.
More fats absorbed = More ketones produced = More fat-burning potential
This is why increasingly more keto-dieters are adding probiotics into their keto regimen.
Now, here's the icing on the cake:
There's a specific strain of probiotics that have been shown to have fat-burning potential on their own... and may amplify the weight-management capabilities of keto:
Thermogenic Probiotics are specific strains of good bacteria that have been studied to suport metabolism, manage caloric levels and impact the reduction in stubborn fat.
In other words, these gut bacteria mirror the positive effects of thermogenic supplements like green tea extract, caffeine and capsicum without the negative side effects like:
- Headaches
- Elevated heart rates
- Increase in blood pressure
- Nausea
- Constipation
Some of these thermogenic strains - L. Gasseri, B. Breve and B. Lactis - Are commonly found in certain types of milk, cottage cheese, kombucha, sauerkraut and specific yogurts.
(Learn more about thermogenic probiotics here)
With the absence of vital vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients due to the strict dietary requirements of going keto...
It might be essential for keto-dieters to incorporate thermogenic probiotics into their daily routine.
By doing so, they will maintain gut health at an optimal level WHILE enjoying the weight management benefits of going keto.
The best part?
Thermogenic probiotics can possibly increase the burn potential of your keto diet - allowing the body to enjoy the combined weight management benefits from the keto diet & thermogenic probiotics.
Hence, we foresee that thermogenic probiotics might be the smarter way to go keto.
If you'd like to find out more about thermogenic probiotics and its benefits on health...
Here at Better Body Co., we have done all the research and developed what we believe is the most unique Thermogenic Probiotic of its kind.
[Want to find out more about how Thermogenic Probiotic work? Click on "Shop Now" in the image below]
At Better Body Co, we’re running a special new year sale on our flagship Thermogenic Probiotic formula blend, Provitalize.
Our customers have consistently reported great results, from weight management to more energy and joint pain relief on our reviews page.
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References:
[1]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14525681
[2]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14769483
[3]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14769489
[4]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11122785
[5]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18175736
[6]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12679447