You’ve no doubt heard quite a bit about the keto diet — a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet that has gained popularity over the years. While it’s a good method of losing weight, like most diets, it’s not completely perfect. Before you can make an informed decision about whether or not you want to follow this diet, you need to weigh its pros and cons.
Wondering what those are? We’ll go over them here, so you can decide if the keto life is right for you!
What Is the Keto Diet?
For those who are unaware, theketo diet requires followers to eat a very low amount of carbs and make up the difference with healthy fats and protein. Those who are on this diet need to carefully weigh the amounts of carbs, fats, and protein (also called macronutrients or macros) that they eat every day, planning their meals in advance.
The entire point of the keto diet is to send the body into a state of ketosis, which is when the ketones in the blood use body fat for energy instead of using glucose. As a result, followers of this ultra-low-carb diet claim to lose weight, have a clearer thought process, and end up with plenty of energy and nutrients. Although the diet can be tough for those who love sugar and carbs, the results often win out, and many people who are on it feel better overall.
Pros and Cons of the Keto Diet
Of course, nothing is perfect, and theketo diet has plenty of pros and cons that need to be weighed out before you choose to follow it. Let’s start with the pros and then move on to the cons.
Pros of the Keto Diet
At MyFitFoods, we know that keto isn’t for everyone, but this diet does have quite a few things going for it.
Keto May Help Reduce Seizures
One of the creators of the modern keto diet was a doctor who was trying to find a way to help his patients with epilepsy. He found that his patients who went on this diet and followed it had fewer seizures. Although there are better medicines now for people with epilepsy, many who have the condition still follow the keto diet as well.
Keto Has Plenty of Health Benefits
In addition to reducing seizure activity, the keto diet helps those with heart disease, high cholesterol levels, and type 2 diabetes.
While the diet is no substitute for the medications prescribed to people with these conditions, it may help improve your overall health. Plus, if you start the diet while in the early stages of some of these conditions, you might be able to reverse them.
Keto Helps With Weight Loss
One of the major (and more well-known) benefits of the keto diet is rapid weight loss, especially for those dealing with obesity. People who have a high carbohydrate intake often end up gaining weight in the belly region, which is bad for their long-term health.
Once you’ve been on this low-carbohydrate diet for a few days to a week and go into ketosis, the ketone bodies will start burning this fat as a source of energy, so you’ll lose the weight and improve your overall wellness.
You’ll Make Your Own Food
Having to keep a close eye on your macros means that you’ll more than likely end up making your own meals every day. You’ll make lunch at home and bring it to work, come prepared with keto-friendly snacks, and more. There are some premade keto meals, but if you want extra variety, you may want to start cooking your own foods.
With Keto, You Get To Eat Fats
For years, people have sworn off of high-fat foods, refusing to add them to their diets under the assumption that all foods that contain fats are bad for you. While this isn’t completely the case, the beliefs still prevail.
With the keto diet, you need to introduce healthy fats into every meal. They should be the second-highest macro you eat daily, besides protein. Adding fats back in makes some people very happy.
With Keto, You’ll Feel Full and Crave Fewer Snacks
The keto diet has no caloric restrictions other than adhering to your macros and cutting back on the carbs. This means that as long as you stay within your macro range, you can eat whatever you want.
In addition, the sugary, carb-filled snacks that leave you craving more are entirely off the menu. After a while, your craving for these foods will lessen, and you’ll feel healthier.
Through Keto, You May Have More Energy
Who doesn’t need more energy? When you’re on the keto diet, you may stop going through the blood sugar highs and lows that come with carb-filled snacks, and you’ll also gain more energy simply through the diet alone.
Once your body starts burning off fat, you’ll get all of the benefits of the additional energy that’s a result. So, you’ll lose weight and have more energy as well. It's a win-win situation!
Cons of the Keto Diet
Theketo diet has a lot going for it, but like any diet, it isn’t without its issues. Here are some of the cons:
Keto Can Be Restrictive
Carbs are a universally beloved thing (unless you have a gluten intolerance). Everyone is so used to eating noodles and snack cakes that going without carbs and sugar for a long period of time can be tough. Even once you get accustomed to the diet, it might be too much to give up. As a result, people are tempted to quit the diet and go back to eating carbs — and many do.
In addition, while many sources of carbohydrates are associated with weight gain, cardiovascular disease, and rapidly changing blood sugar levels, others are nutrient-dense and can help prevent nutrient deficiencies. Removing these foods from your diet might be unnecessary. Ultimately, it’s best to talk to a nutritionist or registered dietitian about whether the keto diet is a good choice for you.
Keto Meal Planning Isn’t for Everyone
People who follow the keto diet have to do a lot of planning. They need to keep their macros within specific ranges every day or else they might end up falling out of ketosis. In addition, there are micros (vitamins and minerals) that they need as well. All of this requires some forethought and a handy keto app or two to ensure that your dinner helps instead of hinders.
Constipation Is No Fun
The keto diet requires you to eat plenty of healthy fats and proteins, and it even encourages you to include some vegetables, like spinach. However, many of the other vegetables that you eat every day are too high in carbs to include in a keto diet, so you often go without them. And what happens if your diet lacks the fiber that it needs to keep you regular? Well, constipation is the result.
In addition, some dieters may experience what’s known as the keto flu, a short-term side effect of removing whole grains, starchy vegetables, legumes, and other sources of carbs from your diet. The result is often temporary lethargy and exhaustion.
Keto Could Put Stress on Your Kidneys
If you’re healthy, then the keto diet can help you lose weight and feel better. However, if you have a kidney condition or are at risk for one, the keto diet might worsen things. The ketones produced by your body are processed and removed via your kidneys. Any additional strain on them can cause additional damage, and you can even run the risk of kidney stones or kidney disease.
Choosing To Follow the Keto Diet
Whether or not you choose to follow the keto diet is completely up to you. Weighing the pros and cons and deciding which factors mean the most to you is what’s really important. Although the keto diet can be a bit restrictive, and no one really enjoys meal planning frombreakfast to dinner every day (admit it!), the weight loss and other potential benefits might outweigh those issues. In the end, choosing this diet plan is really up to you!
Sources:
11 Pros and Cons of the Keto Diet, According to Health Experts | Newsweek
Pros and Cons of the Ketogenic Diet | Northwestern Medicine
Pros and Cons of a Keto Diet | Mayo Clinic