07 – Appetite Suppression ( keto diet )
Many people report decreased hunger while following a ketogenic diet.
The reasons why this happens are still being investigated.
However, it’s been suggested that this hunger reduction may be due to an increased protein and vegetable intake, along with alterations to your body’s hunger hormones.
The ketones themselves may also affect your brain to reduce appetite.
06 – Increased Focus and Energy
People often report brain fog, tiredness and feeling sick when first starting a very low-carb diet. This is termed the “low carb flu” or “keto flu.” However, long-term ketogenic dieters often report increased focus and energy.
When you start a low-carb diet, your body must adapt to burning more fat for fuel, instead of carbs.
When you get into ketosis, a large part of the brain starts burning ketones instead of glucose. It can take a few days or weeks for this to start working properly.
Ketones are an extremely potent fuel source for your brain. They have even been tested in a medical setting to treat brain diseases and conditions such as concussion and memory loss.
Therefore, it comes as no surprise that long-term ketogenic dieters often report increased clarity and improved brain function.
Eliminating carbs can also help control and stabilize blood sugar levels. This may further increase focus and improve brain function.
05 – Short-Term Fatigue
The initial switch to a ketogenic diet can be one of the biggest issues for new dieters. Its well-known side effects can include weakness and fatigue.
These often cause people to quit the diet before they get into full ketosis and reap many of the long-term benefits.
These side effects are natural. After several decades of running on a carb-heavy fuel system, your body is forced to adapt to a different system.
As you might expect, this switch doesn’t happen overnight. It generally requires 7–30 days before you are in full ketosis.
To reduce fatigue during this switch, you may want to take electrolyte supplements.
Electrolytes are often lost because of the rapid reduction in your body’s water content and the elimination of processed foods that may contain added salt.
When adding these supplements, try to get 2,000–4,000 mg of sodium, 1,000 mg of potassium and 300 mg of magnesium per day.
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