How Does the Keto Diet Work?

It might seem counterintuitive that adding more fat to your diet can cause you to lose weight. Typically, your diet is high in carbohydrates, which are converted into glucose or sugar in the blood for use as energy. As glucose enters your bloodstream, your body secretes insulin to store excess glucose as fat. The more carbohydrates, the more glucose. The more glucose, the more insulin and the more insulin, the more fat.

The keto diet relies on the fact that when your meals are high in fat and low in carbohydrates, there are no insulin spikes, and you do not increase your fat stores. Instead, dietary fat and stored fat are converted to ketones ("keto" is short for "ketogenic" producing ketones). Like glucose, ketones can be used for energy production, keeping the body running without the need to increase blood sugar or increase excess fat. The benefits of the keto diet can be huge.

Weightloss

Overall, the keto diet is a great way to burn fat and lose weight. Eating less carbohydrates suppresses your appetite, and studies have shown that keto diet participants consume fewer calories overall for this reason. Burning fat for energy can lead to rapid weight loss.

Lowering the Level of Blood Sugar and Insulin

Because carbohydrate consumption is restricted, blood sugar and insulin levels decrease. This is especially important for people with type 2 diabetes, which causes glucose build-up in the bloodstream. The keto diet can be followed to reduce or eradicate the need for insulin injections for diabetics.

Triglyceride reduction

Molecules in the fat subunit known as triglycerides normally circulate in your bloodstream. High triglyceride levels are a major risk factor in the development of heart disease. On the keto diet, since fat is burned for energy, the number of triglyceride molecules in the bloodstream decreases, reducing the risk of heart disease.

Cholesterol improvement

"Bad" cholesterol (LDL) is another risk factor for developing heart abnormalities. Too much bad cholesterol in your bloodstream will build up in your arteries, narrowing them and causing arteriosclerosis, a type of heart disease. The keto diet lowers bad cholesterol levels, while raising the level of "good" cholesterol (HDL) in your body.