The ketogenic diet – a word which is more popular nowadays, which is widely recommended to lose weight. It has its characteristics, benefit, and some common side effects. And for diet diabetes patients, it differs for both type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes.

What is Keto Diet?

Keto diet is a very low-carb and high-fat diet. In this process, the mechanism of this diet is to decrease carbohydrates and drives the body to breakdown fat for energy.

Regularly our body needs energy which has been converted from sugar or glucose, but on the keto diet, our body goes down of glucose due to low consumption of carbs and our body starts to burn fat instead of glucose to get energy. This is termed as natural ketosis.

On burning fat, it produces a fatty acid substance called ketones which are used for energy.

Keto diet chiefly consists of eggs, meat, fish, fruits, vegetables which are rich in protein.

What it does with diabetes

Some research has found that people who don’t have diabetes have a low risk of getting Type2 diabetes when they follow the keto diet. Because of elevated insulin sensitivity and consumption of low carbs.

Typical benefits of a keto diet on diabetes

Keto diet is kind of a good diet plan for diabetic patient and for pre diabetic diets

• Improves glycemic control in people with diabetes.

• Since carbs intake is low GI is controlled easily for diabetic patients.

• This method helps people to reduce weight.

• Obesity is the major factor for causing type2 diabetes it reduces the risk factor.

• It lowers blood pressure.

• Since it is linked to weight loss it has good effects on blood pressure too.

• Lowers medication intake due to high insulin sensitivity.

• Since insulin sensitivity is high it reduces the medication intake for diabetes.

Keto on Type 1 diabetes

It’s important to understand the difference between NUTRITIONAL KETOSIS AND DIABETIC KETOACIDOSIS for diabetic patients.

Nutritional ketosis

Normally our body needs energy which has been transformed from sugar or glucose, but on the keto diet, our body runs out of glucose due to low intake of carbs and our liver starts to burn fat into ketones instead of glucose to get energy. This is called natural ketosis.

Diabetic ketoacidosis

But diabetic ketoacidosis is a medical emergency condition in which without insulin to transport blood sugar into our body cells blood sugar and ketone level increase rapidly which increases the acid in blood disrupting the blood’s acid-base balance.

For type 1 diabetes people who take insulin, it causes hyperglycemia because of the low intake of carbohydrates.

Insulin intake has to be properly adjusted according to blood sugar level otherwise it may lead to complications.

It is so important to consult a doctor for starting a keto diet for type 1 diabetic patients.

Keto on Type 2 diabetes

Even having negative impacts on Type 1 diabetes but it has some good things to do with type 2 diabetes.

It reduces weight and keeps insulin activity higher which lowers the intake of medicine.

Proper monitoring of diabetes is so important otherwise it may lead to hyperglycemia.

Risk factors of the keto diet

Many complications are resulted in following a keto diet for a very long time, such as

• Keto flu

• Constipation

• Leg cramps

• Headaches

• Kidney stones

• Bone fractures due to acidosis

• Liver stones

• Gall bladder stones

• Cardiovascular diseases

Monitoring

To avoid risk factors proper and frequent monitoring of blood sugar along with ketone level is more important on following a keto diet.

Following a keto diet for some people with type 1 diabetes is good but not for all people. For type 2 diabetes people risk factor is low but proper precautions and education is more important.