Video transcript
The keto diet has been in the news. So what is a keto diet and is it safe?
Keto stands for ketogenic which means a diet that switches you from burning carbs to burning fat. That’s usually low carb and high-ish in protein.
The name comes from the chemicals called ketones which are a byproduct of the fat burn. They can make your breath smell and dehydrate you.
In a ketogenic diet, the body is using ketones for energy. The ketones are produced in the liver from the breakdown of fat. This means that instead of storing fat as energy, the body is required to burn fats to produce the ketones.
There are only two proven benefits of a ketogenic diet: short term weight loss and control of intractable epilepsy in children. Don’t believe the other hype around it.
If you go on a very low calorie ketogenic diet there is a significant risk of nutritional deficiency. So you need to be on a special meal plan with added greens and protein.
If you’re obese, rapid weight loss has other risks such as gallbladder problems.
So be careful and discuss with your GP.
