The keto diet was created in 1921 by Dr. Russel Wilder for the treatment of epilepsy in children.  This was the main successful treatment in the 1920’s and ‘30’s until anticonvulsant therapies were created.  Here are some of the great benefits of the keto diet.

Weight loss.  The obvious benefit of the keto diet is melting pounds away.  You can lose much more weight than with a low fat diet and without hunger.

Type II Diabetes and pre-diabetes.  NOT FOR ANYONE who is a Type 1 diabetic or is insulin dependent.  Type I is not reversible.  People who are Type 1  cannot manufacture insulin in the pancreas.  There are around 1.6 million people who have Type I.  Type II is usually due to insulin resistance wherein the body makes insulin but cannot effectively use it.  Type II can be reversible usually by losing weight and eating healthy because it can increase insulin sensitivity.  This is why the keto diet works so well for Type II diabetics.  Ketones are used for energy while in ketosis and ketones do not need insulin in order to be transported throughout the body. Excessive carbohydrate intake per day in your diet will cause the need for a large amount of insulin to be released by the pancreas in order to remove the carbs.  If your body cannot effectively remove excessive carbs your blood sugar will remain elevated.  This is the cause of Type II diabetes. 

Pre-diabetes is also called metabolic syndrome. This is usually due to insulin resistance.  If you meet any 3 of these criteria you may have metabolic syndrome.

1. Elevated fasting blood sugar.
2. High blood pressure.
3. Large waistline of over 40 inches for men, 35 inches for women.
4.  Elevated triglycerides
5. Low HDL cholesterol  

Parkenson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.  The symptoms of these diseases can be reduced and t slow their progression.  

Brain injuries.   These may be helpful with healing concussions and aid in recovery after brain injuries.

Heart disease.  The keto diet can improve risk factors such as obesity,  lower your LDL (bad cholesterol) levels, increase your HDL (good cholesterol) , lower your blood pressure and glucose.

Cancer.  The keto diet has been shown to slow tumor growth in some types of cancer.

Acne.  Eating fewer carbs and processed foods along with lower insulin levels can reduce or improve acne.

Other conditions which may be improved by following the keto diet include autism, multiple sclerosis, migraine headaches, traumatic brain injury,  polycystic ovary syndrome,and  breast and brain cancers.

It may be quite difficult to tell whether or not you are in ketosis. Here are a few signs that your body may be in ketosis.

1.  Short termed fatigue. One of the first things that can happen is fatigue and weakness called keto flu.  This is a natural part of what happens when you greatly reduce your carb intake.  You’re not in ketosis but are on your way.  Once your body has reduced your glycogen stores with your muscles, your body will begin ketone production.  For a great comparison think of how you feel during and after having vomiting and diarrhea.  You feel this way because you’ve expelled a large amount of fluids and nutrients with an inability to replace them.  You’ve lost a lot of water, glucose and salt.  But once you can return to eating and drinking you begin to recover.  There are electrolyte replacements which can greatly help while you are in this stage.  Some people take them as supplements the entire time while doing keto.

2.  Bad breath.  As the ketones ( specifically acetone ) begin to increase, your breath will have a smelly or fruity odor.  This is normal for ketosis. Just brush several times daily with sugar free toothpaste.

3.  Weight loss.  As you lose water weight and your ketones increase with your glucose decreasing, your body is in early ketosis and the pounds and inches will start dropping.  Don’t pay a lot of attention to weight at first.  Losing inches will be more noticeable until you reach full ketosis, usually anywhere from four days to several weeks. So don’t be upset because you only lost 1-2 lbs.  In fact, don’t even bother to weigh.

4.  Lower appetite.  Ketosis will significantly lower your appetite and cravings.  Some contend they don’t even think about food! A state of Ketosis balances blood sugar and provides the brain with stable energy.

5.  More energy and increased ability to focus.  Too many carbohydrates causes more insulin to be released in your body, leaving you with low energy and hunger too soon.  Your appetite increases causing you to overeat and gain weight.  Your energy source of carbs is burned up causing brain fog and sluggishness.  On the keto diet, your fuel source is excessive fat which is burned for energy.  You don’t feel hungry too often because you don’t need to replace the  stored body fat.  This allows for readily available energy throughout the day.

6.  Constipation and diarrhea  These are temporary side effects of ketosis and will subside. It will help to eat a lot of fresh low carb vegetables which contain a lot of fiber.  And drinking plenty of water, up to a gallon of water per day.

7.  Insomnia.  This is common in the early stages of ketosis and will subside within a few weeks. Many state they sleep better once their body adjusts to a constant state of ketosis.

8.  Increased ketones in your breath, blood and urine.  Measuring ketones in your urine may be done by using indicator strips for urine..  These are not as accurate as using a breathalyzer  for blood ketones.

If you remain consistent with following the keto diet, are consistently losing weight and feel much better….don’t worry a lot about ketone levels.  If you are struggling with weight loss and can’t tell if you are in ketosis, then buying a ketone breathalyzer should help you to maintain ketosis.

Generally there are three basic types of keto with some other variations of these three.

1.  The standard or strict keto diet consists of 75-80% healthy fats, 20 grams of carbohydrates, roughly 5 %, and 20% proteins.  It consists of organic fruits and vegetables, fresh caught fish, grass fed beef and free-range chicken and eggs.  NO processed foods such as hot dogs and lunch meats.  This type is the most common and longest researched type of keto.

2. High protein keto diet consists of 60 % fat, 35 % protein and 5 % carbs.  It is similar to the standard but with less fat and more protein.  This can be used when first starting keto to help build muscle and then moving to the standard keto diet .You want to be careful not to have too much protein because this can knock you out of ketosis or you may find you are having a hard time losing weight.  Consistently too much protein causes a condition in which the excess protein is converted to glucose thereby can cause you to start breaking down your lean muscle, such as your heart muscle.

3. Targeted ketogenic diet is used for extra energy by athletes in training or with high-intensity workouts.  Otherwise it is not recommended.Another type of keto diet for athletes is the cyclical keto diet, also for athletes and otherwise not recommended.  These 2 diets can too easily knock you out of ketosis.

4. Dirty keto is much like standard keto but without using organic, grass fed or free-range products. So you would be adding more unknown or unpure ingredients to your body such as low acceptable limits of pesticides, hormones and antibiotics.  Also uses processed foods

5. Lazy keto is less restrictive than standard keto in which the only thing you worry about is making sure you only have 20 grams or less of carbs.  No counting or limiting calories either.  Also uses processed foods and fast food.

There are other versions of the keto diet but they are not really for beginners.