What Benefits do You get from the Keto Diet besides Weight Loss?

I have been doing Keto now for going on four years.  When I started, I knew very little about it except it would help me lose weight.  My jump into keto was very much trial and error.  I persevered and lost 60 pounds in a very short amount of time. That is not an unusual result of starting the Keto diet.  However, I fall off the keto wagon often and have had periods in the last four years that I did not follow the rules of keto and I have maintained my weight loss through it all.

This made me delve farther into keto to learn more about how it works and what benefits you get from being on such a diet.  I did quite a bit of research (I am a science nerd) and read many scientific research papers.  I tried out numerous so-called Keto recipes that tasted like sawdust and I worked out how to convert some of my favorite recipes into keto without losing the taste I expected.

All of this is just to tell you that following Keto is really not a hard thing to do and it works as long as you grasp the basic premise of this diet.  To make it as simple as I can, you cut carbohydrates down as low as you can and increase your protein and fat intake.  The type of fat makes a big difference, though.  Be sure you are eating unprocessed, non-trans fats.

The reason this diet works, basically, is that the body is starved of the glucose it usually uses to provide energy needed.  That sounds bad, but the beauty of the human body is that it easily adapts to challenges; when the glucose dries up, your body automatically chooses fat molecules as a source of energy.  So as long as you restrict carbohydrates that break down to glucose molecules and eat enough fats in your diet, your body will continue on doing it's thing without any problems.

I don't do all the math of figuring out macros on my keto diet, I just stick to maintaining carbohydrate intake to 25 grams a day and eat plenty of healthy fat content such as nuts, cheese, healthy oils, and vegetables with fat content. 

The word you will hear being thrown around on the internet is Ketosis, but all that means is that your body has begun to produce ketones from breaking down fat molecules; and this provides the alternative source of energy for the body, especially the brain. If I do this, following the Keto diet is relatively easy and works for weight loss.   

But what other benefits am I getting from being on my Keto diet?

1. I feel fuller after eating a smaller portion of food due to the fat content.
2. My blood sugar is more regulated, which can help prevent gaining weight.
3. Inflammation in the body is reduced which promotes an overall sense of well being.  (Inflammation is associated with obesity and a range of other health problems, so this is really good. Chronic inflammation has been linked with insulin resistance.)
4. I experienced an improvement in my metal clarity and how my brain works.
5. My A1c has become lower than ever and since diabetes runs in my family I have to be aware of this number.
6. My heart is healthier due to the increase in good cholesterol and the decrease of triglycerides because of the type of fats being ingested.
7. My blood pressure remains low.
8. My worry about the return of my cancer is minimized because all cancer cells depend on glucose to survive and by restricting the amount of free glucose in my body I am starving any cancer cells that may still be in my body.
9. My gut health is improved for the same reason, most gut pathogens and infections require glucose for energy and if that is restricted, they die.
10. Because I am eating foods rich in antioxidants, my body is protected from oxidative stress which causes damage to cells and tissues.

I don't expect you to take my word, but I don't believe that everyone is a science nerd like myself.  I would be happy to supply the list of scientific papers that I have based this post on, to anyone who wants to read them.  Just comment that you want this list and I will send it to you.

As a conclusion, the keto diet has been found to have therapeutic effects of some neurological conditions such as epilepsy, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease  and even Multiple Sclerosis. Studies are ongoing in the use of the keto diet to help with these terrible diseases.

And finally, I would be amiss if I did not state that beginning any diet has some risks and you should never start a diet without first consulting your physician to make sure that you are doing no harm to your body.