The ketogenic diet is currently trending as the best diet for weight loss to date. It’s a high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet that produces ketones, the result of the breakdown of fats in the liver to be used as energy.
The following are a few myths that have been debunked about going keto:
Myth#1: You Can Eat Any Type of Fat
One of the keys to keto diet is getting enough healthy fats. In order to make it work, you need to be getting the majority of your total calories from fat. However, that doesn’t mean you should start reaching for the bacon straight away. You can just get it from any old source.
Stay away from:
- Hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils found in processed products like cookies, crackers, margarine, and fast food
- Processed vegetable oils like cottonseed, sunflower, safflower, soybean, and canola oils
Good fats to use are Olive oil, Avocado, coconut oil, grass-fed ghee, MCT oil.
Myth#2: It’s a High-Protein Diet
This is not true. In keto, you should be getting about 75% of daily calories from fat, 5% from carbohydrates, and 20% from protein. It is suggested that adults get 10-35% of their daily calories from protein; therefore a high-protein diet would mean 30-35% of your calories are coming from protein sources.
Myth#3: Keto Means Low-Carb
Not all low-carb diets are equal. For many people, a carb intake of 100 grams per day would seem low. However, on keto, that needs to be reduced even further. Ideally, you should only be eating no more than 20-35 grams of carbohydrates a day on this diet. If you go above this limit, your body will use those carbohydrates for fuel, bringing your body out of ketosis. As a result, your weight loss will begin to slow.
Myth#4: Fasting is a Requirement in Keto
It’s not a requirement; you do not have to fast to go keto. It’s typically not recommended that you incorporate fasting into the keto diet until you’ve eased into the process, such as lowering your carb intake slowly or going alkaline first. However, intermittent fasting while going keto does have many benefits. It can accelerate weight loss, detoxification, and help control hunger and cravings.
Myth#5: Keto is for Weight Loss Only
A ketogenic diet will certainly help you to lose weight. However, that’s not all it’s good for. Keto weight loss is one of the main advantages of the diet. This is what draws lots of people to give it a try. On top of that, it can also regulate your hormone levels, stabilize your blood sugar, as well as improve your cardiovascular and digestive health. Since it’s used for the treatment of diabetes and heart disease, it can also reduce your risk of suffering from these health problems.