Ketogenic Diet

Ketogenic diet is a low carbohydrate diet mostly being used for weight loss.

There is not one “standard” ketogenic diet with a specific ratio of macronutrients (carbohydrates, protein, fat). But it typically contains less than 50 gr of carbohydrate , high amount of protein and moderate amount of fat.

The premise of the ketogenic diet for weight loss is that if you deprive the body of glucose—the main source of energy for all cells in the body, an alternative fuel called ketones is produced from stored fat. The brain demands the most glucose in a steady supply, about 120 grams daily, because it cannot store glucose. During fasting, or when very little carbohydrate is eaten, the body first pulls stored glucose from the liver and temporarily breaks down muscle to release glucose. If this continues for 3-4 days and stored glucose is fully depleted, blood levels of a hormone called insulin decrease, and the body begins to use fat as its primary fuel.

Ketogenic diet suppresses the appetite through:

• A decrease in appetite-stimulating hormones, such as insulin and ghrelin, when eating restricted amounts of carbohydrate.
• Ketones are natural appetite suppressant.