Current:Home > NewsWhat is the keto diet? Experts break down the popular weight loss diet.-LoTradeCoin
What is the keto diet? Experts break down the popular weight loss diet.
View Date:2024-12-24 07:09:51
Weight loss and overall health benefits are the two biggest reasons people choose to begin the ketogenic diet, according to recent research.
Over the last few years, the diet known colloquially as "keto" has risen as a popular weight loss mechanism. But is it actually your best bet?
"Restrictive dieting is really unnecessary and usually backfires for most people," registered dietitian Jamie Nadeau tells USA TODAY. "Not only do most people gain weight back after the diet becomes unsustainable, but many end up with disordered behaviors around food. ... It often leaves you feeling like something is wrong with you or that you lack willpower, when really it’s the diet setting you up to fail."
Here's what health experts want you to know about the keto diet.
What is the keto diet?
Originally developed as a diet to treat epilepsy in children, the keto diet has evolved into a popular weight-loss mechanism for adults, Nadeau says.
It's a low-carb diet, but instead of focusing on protein as many others do, it emphasizes consuming higher amounts of fat — and especially saturated fats including butter, lard and palm or coconut oils, according to Harvard Health.
"It puts you into a state called ketosis, which causes your body to burn fat instead of glucose," Nadeau explains.
From a dietitian's perspective, that can be troubling because it de-prioritizes many foods known to have vital nutrients, including whole grains, legumes and fruit, she adds. Health experts also say that diets high in saturated fats are linked to heart disease, and that keto in particular also poses risks including liver and kidney problems, constipation and mood swings.
How fast do you lose weight on keto?
While losing weight quickly is a common goal on diets like keto, Nadeau stresses that it's "quite unsustainable" for most people.
"Even if you initially lose weight, and many do, you’re likely to gain it back when the diet becomes unsustainable," she says. "In fact, many people who initially lose weight on keto end up gaining back the weight they lost plus more."
Harvard Health recommends that if keto is used for weight loss purposes, it's only used as a short-term means to jumpstart the weight loss and not a long-term solution.
If you're looking to lose weight, Nadeau instead recommends focusing on small habit changes: adding more physical activity to your daily schedule, eating more fruits, vegetables and foods high in fiber and protein and drinking more water.
"New diets always sound exciting and it’s easy to get swept up in thinking they’re the magic diet you’ve been searching for," Nadeau says. "The truth, though, is that restrictive diets don’t work long-term. If it’s not something you can envision yourself doing forever, it’s not going to work. Your diet changes should be things you can fit into your life forever so that you can maintain your health and results forever."
Paleo, Atkins and keto are all low-carb.What's the difference between these diets?
veryGood! (815)
Related
- Tesla issues 6th Cybertruck recall this year, with over 2,400 vehicles affected
- Man arrested in shooting death of 9-year-old in Chicago, police say
- Once Colombia’s most-wanted drug lord, the kingpin known as Otoniel faces sentencing in US
- 'That's so camp': What the slang and aesthetic term means, plus its place in queer history
- NFL playoff picture Week 10: Lions stay out in front of loaded NFC field
- What to know about beech leaf disease, the 'heartbreaking' threat to forests along the East Coast
- Megan Rapinoe reveals why she laughed after missed penalty kick in final game with USWNT
- Ciara Is Pregnant, Expecting Baby With Husband Russell Wilson
- Britney Spears Reunites With Son Jayden Federline After His Move to Hawaii
- Thousands of Los Angeles city workers walk off job for 24 hours alleging unfair labor practices
Ranking
- Oprah Winfrey denies being paid $1M for Kamala Harris rally: 'I was not paid a dime'
- Stop calling us about manatees, they're just mating, Florida authorities tell beachgoers
- Indiana teacher with ‘kill list’ of students, staff sentenced to 2½ years on probation
- How to blast through a Russian minefield
- What that 'Disclaimer' twist says about the misogyny in all of us
- Phillies fans give slumping shortstop Trea Turner an emotional lift
- Woman in critical condition after being bitten by shark at Rockaway Beach in NYC
- Ronda Rousey says 'I got no reason to stay' in WWE after SummerSlam loss
Recommendation
-
Who will save Florida athletics? Gators need fixing, and it doesn't stop at Billy Napier
-
Fact-checking 'Winning Time': Did cursing Celtics fans really mob the Lakers' team bus?
-
$1.55 billion Mega Millions prize balloons as 31 drawings pass without a winner
-
'Suits' on Netflix': Why is everyone watching Duchess Meghan's legal drama from 2011?
-
Wildfires burn on both coasts. Is climate change to blame?
-
Here's the truth about taking antibiotics and how they work
-
Josh Duggar's appeal in child pornography case rejected by appeals court
-
Arrest warrants issued for Montgomery, Alabama, riverfront brawl