The ketogenic diet continues to be one of the most popular diet plans in the U.S., garnering roughly a million online searches a month. But what is the keto diet? How does it work? And is keto healthy for you?
Many people call it the keto diet, but it’s actually short for the ketogenic diet. Overall, the main purpose of the ketogenic diet is to lose weight by eating a low amount of carbs, a high amount of fat and a moderate amount of protein.
So, why is keto so popular? The keto diet didn’t make U.S. New & World Report’s 2022 list of the best overall diets, but it did come it at No. 4 on their list of best diets for fast weight loss. That’s because the keto diet reaps the benefits of ketosis, the metabolic state when your body uses fat for energy. Some methods to measure ketosis are better than others, and there are certain foods that can help you achieve ketosis.
Related: U.S. News & World Report best diets of 2022 includes Mediterranean, DASH, flexitarian. Intermittent fasting, Sirtfood diet rank poorly, too restrictive.
The keto diet was first invented in the 1920s as a treatment for epilepsy, but its use declined with the use of modern epilepsy drugs. Since the late ’90s, however, it has exploded in popularity as a weight loss strategy, according to the National Library of Medicine.
What is the keto diet?
The ketogenic diet is an eating plan that has very high fat content and little to no carbs. This is because the main purpose of the keto diet is to get your body to burn fat as its main energy course rather than carbohydrates and glucose, a state known as ketosis. This shift in your metabolic state can lead to weight loss. People who support using the keto diet also say that there are many benefits to the keto diet besides losing weight.
What are the basic rules of the keto diet?
The ratio of fat to carbs and protein is 4:1. The standard ketogenic diet is 70% fats, 20% proteins and 10% carbohydrates. The ketogenic diet is meant to send your body into ketosis.
Story continues
Related: Protein-packed smoothies and low-carb dinners make keeping keto easy.
What is ketosis?
The body always seeks out glucose (and its stored form, glycogen) for fuel. Limiting…