THE KETO DIET

high fat, adequate protein & low carbohydrate

Ketogenic diet, as one of the popular diet nowadays, has been advertised for its efficacy of weight loss.

But is it really as foolproof as the media says?

What is a keto diet?

A ketogenic diet is a low-carbohydrate and high-fat diet. A true keto diet emphasizes fat and limits protein, which causes the body to switch from burning carbohydrates to burning fat. Clinical ketogenic diets limit daily carbs intake to somewhere between 20 g and 50 g, primarily from non-starchy vegetables (Abbasi, 2018).

Effects on children with seizures

The ketogenic diet has been primarily used to treat intractable epilepsy in children over the past century. Many studies showed marked improvement in the reduction of seizures in children.

For instance, in 2008 the first randomized prospective controlled trial examined the effectiveness of the keto diet in 145 children who had daily seizures and were resistant to at least two antiepileptic drugs. The results after three months showed a 75% decrease in the occurrence of seizures in the diet group, which were significantly lower than the control group (Dhamijia, Eckert, & Wirrell, 2013).

Although the keto diet cannot completely cure epilepsy, all types of seizures have been reported to respond to the keto diet in some way (Dhamijia et al., 2013).

Effects on weight loss

In a meta-analysis review of randomized controlled trials that compare long-term weight loss between the very-low-carb keto diet and low-fat diet, the result showed that people assigned to the keto diet achieve a greater weight loss than those assigned to the low-fat diet in the long term (Bueno et al., 2013).

Even though the keto diet has favorable effects on body weight, in the long term and when compared with conventional therapy, there are little clinical significant differences (Bueno et al., 2013). Evidence for keto diet for weight loss is still preliminary, therefore more research is needed (Abbasi, 2018).

Also, serious health risks come along with long-term utilization of the keto diet such as chronic complications include:

Constipation
Renal stones
High cholesterol levels
Specific vitamin and/or mineral deficiency if not supplemented (Dhamijia et al., 2013).

Fact or Fad?

Evidence is supported for the benefit of the keto diet on children with seizures. But a keto diet for weight loss? Not so sure if it is worth a try. People on a keto diet seems to experience rapid weight loss, but the diet also has harmful side effects for the human body. Besides, little evidence showed long-term weight loss on a keto diet. So, more research is needed.

**Always consult health professionals before initiating any kind of diet.