A more extreme but also popular form of low-carb eating is the ketogenic diet. In this article, we’ll explain what it actually involves.
On average, an adult gets about 40 to 70% of their daily energy from carbohydrates. That’s roughly 200 to 350 grams per day, coming from sources like pasta, rice, potatoes, bread, fruit, cookies, candy, and cake.
Low-carb diets can have different purposes. For people with diabetes, it may reduce the need for medication. Others follow it because they believe it’s healthier, but the vast majority do it to lose weight.
Any diet where you consume fewer calories than you burn will lead to weight loss — and that includes low-carb diets. The rapid initial weight loss is often partly due to the body releasing water that was previously stored with carbohydrates.
In a ketogenic diet, you eat extremely few carbs: only 25–50 grams per day.
Some organs, including the brain, require carbohydrates to function. Without them, the body has to switch to an alternative fuel: ketones, which are produced from fatty acids.
Ketones make the blood more acidic, and following a keto diet puts the body into a state of ketosis. While healthy individuals can usually maintain safe blood pH levels, there is not yet enough research on the long-term health effects of ketosis.
The ketogenic diet is very demanding to maintain. It’s often nearly impossible to get enough fruit, vitamins, and minerals. Many people feel tired and sluggish at first, making it harder to exercise regularly.
So the question remains: is eating so few carbs truly healthy?