Is the Keto Diet Effective?

A recent survey of registered dietitians named the low-carbohydrate keto diet yet again as the most popular diet in the United States. Powering this diet is fat, and loads of it — all the way up to a hefty 90 percent of one’s daily calories.

Its fans (and marketers) feed social media with before and after photos, crediting the diet for life-altering weight loss or other effects. They swirl butter into their coffee, load up on cheese, and eat lonely burgers without its bestie, the bun. Staples like whole grains, legumes, fruit and starchy vegetables are being largely pushed off the plate as devotees strive for ketosis — when the body begins to burn fat instead of glucose as its primary energy source.

“America is in a state of carbophobia,” said Whitney Linsenmeyer, a spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

The diet is hailed for dropping pounds, burning more calories, reducing hunger, managing diabetes, treating drug resistant epilepsy, improving blood pressure, and cholesterol, as well as triglycerides, the major storage form of fat in the body. People have reported improved concentration, too. “We see pretty dramatic benefits,” said Dr. William Yancy, director of the Duke Diet and Fitness Center.

‘If I want to pig out there is always Dirty Keto aka Taco Bell Roasted Chicken Power Bowl tell them to omit the beans, rice and sauce ... add extra guac (I can eat 2 of these)’

Have you tried Chipotle Grill’s steak salad? No beans or rice and only salsa fresca with a big “glop” of guac? It’s a thing of beauty!

Really? Wow. There is zero evidence sugar and excessive carbs are good for anything except in incidence of the absence of them - starvation. I always think of the Laura Ingalls Wilder story of the cold winter where the trains couldn’t get through and all they had was wheat seeds. Which they ground daily into a little rough bread to survive. Which they barely did. The whole family became sickly weak skeletons. But yeah, carbs are important but only in tiny amounts and they need to be good carbs that will nourish either you or the gut biome. (And they don’t need much!)

? IAM 58, wear the same size pants as when I was 23, weigh within 5 lbs of my weight upon Infantry OSUT/abn graduation....

I am 81 and don't exercise at all.

Try a 3 day fast and get a real feeling for hunger pains then imagine someone that has that feeling all the time whether he is eating or not. May give you a little more appreciation for those that seem unable to control their appetite. We make no attempt to determine why people that do not have a weight control problem seem to do nothing but just answer nature and still their weight remains normal. Most of those people imagine they just have superior control of their lives and intellect which accounts for heir self control. Fact is most people of normal weight make no conscious effort to control their weight at all, it just happens. Maybe we should wonder why?

Talk to people who jumped on the Phen-Fen train, they will tell you they did absolutely nothing to adjust their eating habits, it just came naturally and for the first time they felt like any other normal weighted person. We have no clue why that worked but it did. Needs more investigation but not likely to happen.

When I joined the army when I was 16, I weighed 107 pounds when I got out 3 years later I weighed 124 and still wore the same uniforms I was issued even if a little tight around the waist.

Be thankful you are able to keep a normal weight.

Look into insulin resistance as a factor in obesity and diabetes. Pretty interesting stuff. Try a guy on YouTube Butter Bob Biggs.

Obesity, diabetes, food fights and insulin resistance etc is not foreign to me. My wife struggles with eating and weight, diabetic for decades, stroke at 54, etc. Yeah.

My personal observation is after 42 years of knowing her, 38 years of marriage, is that her horrible childhood of abuse of all sorts ruined her sense of self esteem, worth value and control, and over tome that complies into health issues.

Since I am not a physiologist, psychologist, chemist, etc, my opinion matters not, but as a scientist, I can make cause-effect longitudinal comments based on observation of time.

As I age, I find that I am more conscious of what and how much I eat, but I make no attempt at “watching my weight- work hard, burn calories, eat well ( good food, not fad diets etc) and trust God for the rest
.

Blessing to you Sir, I hope to live till I am 120, or I die if required protecting my loved ones, whichever comes first.

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