Ketogenic Diet - What You Should Know
The body uses glucose as its primary source of energy. When carbohydrate or glucose metabolism is restricted, the body will produce ketone bodies from fatty acids as an energy source. If someone reduces the number of carbohydrates they consume, or are fasting, then ketone bodies become the default energy source. Ketone bodies consist of Acetoacetate, which can be detected best in the urine, Beta-hydroxybutyrate, which can be detected best in the blood, and Acetone, which can be detected best through the breath. The standard ketogenic diet consists of 75 percent fat, 20 percent protein, and 5 percent carbohydrate. The average American's diet consists of 56 percent carbohydrate, of which a large percentage is refined and simple sugars, which spike insulin and lead to insulin resistance and weight gain. The ketogenic diet changes how your body uses energy through entering a state called ketosis. The body has to adapt to this new way of working through ketogenesis. In this process of