The Mediterranean Keto Lifestyle
The Mediterranean take on the centuries-old ketogenic diet is not a fad but rather a pairing of proven approaches to eating associated with optimal health and longevity.
The fundamental approach when cutting carbs and boosting heart health is focusing on a healthy, holistic approach that includes clean eating, physical activity, and sharing meals with family and friends.
The consumption of vegetables, select pulse vegetables like lupin beans, and olive oil regular, moderate exercise lower stress levels close relationships with friends and family interaction, and being an active part of a community, collectively contribute to our overall health and well-being.
Consider adopting these seven principles, to approach the keto diet from a Mediterranea perspective, to optimize triglycerides and promote heart health while adopting a low-carb, high-fat diet:
- Eat healthily: This tip seems obvious but its importance makes it worth reiterating. Keto-friendly convenience foods have their place in any low-carb, high-fat lifestyle, but sourcing clean whole food sources is crucial when also seeking to improve heart healthso beware.
- Seek the silver linings: Life can get heavy, and finding moments to laugh and do things that bring you joy are essential to well-being while journeying to cut the carbs.
- Get moving regularly: Theres no one right way to get active. Find activities you enjoy and make you feel invigorated and incorporate more of those experiences into your weekly routine.
Helps Burn Abdominal Fat
Your internal organs often get encased in visceral fat. The metabolic dysfunction that is currently so prevalent in the West may be caused by excess visceral fat, which is linked to inflammation and insulin resistance. Diets low in carbohydrates are highly successful at shedding this dangerous belly fat. In actuality, a bigger percentage of the fat that people who follow low-carb diets seem to lose comes from their abdomen.
What Happens To Hdl Levels On A Keto Diet
Though eating fat doesnt affect blood cholesterol levels in a standard carb-heavy diet, when carbs are restricted and fat becomes the basis of your diet, HDL levels ultimately improve.
So on a keto diet eating fat does affect your cholesterol levels, just in the opposite way weve been told!
Supporting these observations, A 2017 review of human and animal studies found keto diets to be generally associated with reductions in total cholesterol, increases in HDL decreases in triglycerides, and reductions in LDL .
A 2020 high quality randomized control study of 34 older adults with obesity found that over 8 weeks participants on the keto diet lost three times the body fat compared with a group eating a low-fat diet. The keto group also had greater improvement in insulin sensitivity, triglyceride levels, and HDL cholesterol
A 2013 meta-analysis of 12 high quality studies involving more than 1200 participants investigating the impact of very-low-carbohydrate ketogenic diets vs. low fat diets, found that the average increase in HDL particles in the low carb group was double that of the low fat group .
Taken together these findings all affirm that differences in HDL are due to carbohydrate intake, not fat intake.
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Listen To Keto Podcasters And You May Be More Motivated To Stick With The Diet
If youve decided to start, recommit to, or continue following the popular ketogenic diet this year, you likely have one goal in mind: weight loss . The very low-carbohydrate diet is notoriously a complete nutritional overhaul, as you scale back your intake of carbs. Made up of up to 75 to 80 percent dietary fat and only 20 to 50 grams of net carbs per day, the diet can easily be thought of as one that promotes all butter and bacon but its so much more than that.
Getting and staying in ketosis takes skill. You can read some great books on keto that show you how to eat this way and follow clever keto bloggers for recipe inspiration , but nothing compares to the deep dive that these keto podcasts provide.
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During your journey as a keto-er, youll want practical information, such as exactly what to eat, how to get back on track, and the best products in specific categories . But food is only part of your health, and the best podcasters go beyond that, tackling topics like inflammation and its role in disease, good sleep, stress reduction, and learning about yourself and what holds you back from your health goals. They also attract some of the top keto celebrities. More than that, these hosts are engaging, knowledgeable, and like chatting with a friend.
How Many Carbs Do You Eat On Keto Vs Paleo
The success of the entire keto diet rests on sticking to a very strict number of carbs per day. Most people put that at 20 to 50 grams of carbs per day.
Paleo doesnt have a set guideline. Generally, you will likely be eating fewer carbs than you were before on a standard diet. When people cut out breads, cookies, crackers, and grains, they may end up eating fewer carbohydrates, says McDaniel.
On paleo, carb intake differs for everyone, says Kubal. In general, Kubal advises clients on paleo to fill half their plate with nonstarchy vegetables, one-quarter with lean protein, and one-quarter with starchy carbs, like sweet potatoes.
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If Youre Keto Your Lipids May Be Misleading
In science and medicine, your conclusions are only as good as your tests.
You dont need to be a researcher or doctor to understand this concept. Take the simple example of body weight. If I tell you only that someone weighs 207 lbs and ask you to tell me about the mystery persons health, what would you say? You could make a guess based on population averages, but it would be a pretty poor guess. If I forced you to guess, youd probably comment that this person is overweight or obese and may recommend that s/he try to lose a few pounds. But, of course, your guess and advice are handicapped by your lack of relevant information. Is this person tall? Muscular? Pregnant? This last would be unlikely, as the person I had in mind was Usain Bolt.
Lets alter the scenario such that I tell you the person wasnt 207 lbs, but rather had a cholesterol of 450 mg/dL . Similarly, if I forced you or a doctor to tell me about the mystery persons health, you could make a guess based on population averages and would probably comment that this person is at high risk for heart disease.
This was precisely the scenario in a new report entitled, A Standard Lipid Panel is Insufficient for the Care of a Patient on a High-Fat, Low-Carbohydrate Ketogenic Diet, published in Frontiers in Medicine. This report shows how, just like by only knowing Usain Bolts weight you could misdiagnose him as overweight, standard lipid panels can lead to misdiagnoses and harmful medical recommendations.
Reference:
Predicting How Keto May Affect Your Cholesterol Levels
To have an idea if the keto diet may have a negative effect on your cholesterol, consider your starting triglyceride number. According to the Mayo Clinic, triglycerides are another type of lipid in your blood that your body uses for energy high triglyceride and LDL levels can lead to fatty deposits that gum up arteries, notes the American Heart Association. Normal levels are less than 150 milligrams per deciliter . About a quarter of the population has triglyceride levels above 150 mg/dL, which is the threshold to consider elevated triglycerides. This is a large percentage of the population, so its not uncommon, says Soffer.
If you have normal levels, keto is likely safe to try. For people with normal or perfect triglyceride levels, the impact from keto is minimal or none, says Soffer. If, on the other hand, you have insulin resistance,type 2 diabetes, and/or abdominal obesity, and your triglycerides are elevated it may seem like you should shy away from keto, but the opposite may be true, Soffer argues, explaining that the low-carb nature of keto has the potential to decrease insulin resistance and improve triglycerides.
Still, though, the aforementioned Nutrition & Metabolism study involved a mere 34 people so more research, particularly larger, longer-term studies, is needed before scientists can fully understand the true effects of keto on insulin resistance and triglycerides.
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Sugar Can Become Your New Fat
It would only make sense for fats to increase triglycerides more than carbs, but the science shows us that just the opposite occurs.
In one study, people with high triglycerides and normal triglycerides were put on a 15% fat, whole-food diet after eating a high-fat diet . After only one meal of the low-fat diet, their triglyceride levels were elevated for higher and longer than during the high-fat diet.
Fasting triglyceride concentrations also increased by 60% and the production of atherogenic LDL cholesterol increased as well. This occurred in people with normal and high triglycerides in response to a whole-food based low-fat diet.
Do these findings mean that we should avoid carbs if we want to reduce our triglycerides?
The Main Differences Between The Paleo Diet And The Keto Diet
How much fat you eat differs. This is the biggest difference between the diets. Fat is a condiment in paleo. It is an entrée in keto, says Kubal.
Paleo doesnt allow dairy and soy, while keto does. But even on the keto diet, certain types of dairy are better than others. For example, flavored yogurt is off-limits, but full-fat plain Greek yogurt is okay occasionally. Meanwhile, you can eat as much high-fat cheese like feta and cheddar as you want.
Compared with keto, paleo allows more veggie variety. That means you may do better on paleo if you enjoy eating fruit and starchy vegetables.
Before you choose, think about which foods you are okay with giving up.
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What Is The Keto Diet
Low carbohydrate, high protein eating plans are fairly popular and not particularly new. The Atkins diet, which emphasized protein over everything else, enjoyed a fairly prominent time in the sun, while the Paleo and South Beach diets offered similar but slightly altered diet plans.
These types of diets that focus on low carbohydrate intake and high proteins are sometimes broadly referred to as ketogenic diets, but a true ketogenic diet is slightly different. It still emphasizes a low carb intake, but the keto diet specifically centers on fat. With keto, up to 90 percent of your daily calories are meant to come from fats, making it an extremely high fat diet.
As you can imagine, this is not a diet that should be taken lightly. Keto diets are primarily used in neurological medicine, and they have been shown to help reduce epileptic seizures in children. They may help with weight loss, weight management, susceptibility to cardiovascular disease, and cholesterol.
Taking Supplements To Lower Triglycerides
The data show that diet and exercise are practical approaches for lowering triglycerides. However, for some people, lifestyle changes may not be enough. In that case, it may be worth discussing supplements with your healthcare provider.
Disclaimer:
Heres a list of possible choices.36
- Niacin: 2,000 to 3,000 mg per day37
- Berberine: 500 mg twice daily38
- Fish oil: Eicosapentaenoic acid 2 to 4 grams per day 39
- Curcumin: 80 to 100 mg daily40
- Fenugreek: 10 grams per day41
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The Truth About The Ketogenic Diet And Lipids
Lets look at some of the most important facts about the ketogenic diet and its relation to ones lipid profile:
Lipid Profile Changes on the Ketogenic Diet
The facts show that a well-planned low-carb diet can actually lead to a better cholesterol profile, not a harmful one.
In obese patients, a ketogenic diet has been shown to significantly :
If you hear anyone talk about elevated cholesterol from a low-carb diet, thats likely due to an increase in HDL cholesterol, which is actually beneficial and means a LOWER risk of heart disease because it increases HDL to LDL cholesterol ratio.
Plus, a whole foods, ketogenic diet eliminates sugar-creating foods that can cause inflammation and damage to the arteries. Since your body has less glucose available to make cholesterol, total cholesterol levels will drop.
You can also expect a drop in triglyceride levels, as eating carbohydrates spikes your triglyceride levels so, a great decrease in carbs means lower triglyceride readings.
High Triglycerides And Heart Disease
Many studies have linked high triglycerides to increased risk of cardiovascular disease.
Triglycerides are most useful for measuring heart disease risk when analyzed alongside HDL cholesterol. Researchers have found that in high risk patients a high triglyceride to HDL ratio predicts risk better than other measures, including LDL cholesterol.
Some researchers, however, doubt that triglycerides actually cause heart disease. Instead, triglycerides are a warning sign a red alert for other heart disease risk factors, like obesity or type 2 diabetes.
For instance, drugs called fibrates which lower triglycerides specifically have only mixed results in clinical trials on heart disease.
Cholesterol lowering drugs called statins also lower triglyceride levels, and have been shown to reduce heart disease risk. But statins also lower total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels more established risk factors for heart disease.
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Cut Your Sugar Intake
If the Standard American Diet is high in anything, its high in sugar.
Thats right. The average American eats about 152 pounds of sugar every year!.
Added sugar comes from sweetened drinks, baked goods, candy, desserts almost anything that comes in a package. That includes the purple Kool-Aid at the gas station.
And yes, added sugar in the diet means added sugar in the blood.
Your liver then turns that sugar to triglycerides. Its a safety mechanism, if you recall, to prevent dangerous hyperglycemia.
Those triglycerides, unfortunately, end up as body fat or visceral fat around your organs. They also end up in your blood, where you can measure them.
In one study, researchers found that fructose and high fructose corn syrup significantly increased triglyceride levels in young men and women for 24 hours following ingestion.
After 24 hours, however, their serum triglycerides returned to baseline. Where did all those triglycerides go? They were probably stored away.
Another study found that sugar intake was linked to higher triglyceride levels in children.
Low-carb, low-sugar diets, on the other hand, are linked to lower triglyceride levels. More on that now.
How To Maintain Healthy Cholesterol On Keto
We still dont know the best diet for high cholesterol, but the data suggests that Keto can improve cholesterol profiles in obese people and those with diabetes. Its a promising drug-free therapy for these populations.
But what if your LDL spikes on Keto? Some people say not to worry about it. That other risk markers are more important. That high cholesterol alone doesnt cause heart disease.
Maybe theyre right. We dont have good long-term data on otherwise healthy people that develop high LDL on Keto.
But since high LDL is a well-established heart disease risk factor in other populations, its probably wise to play it safe. Beyond consulting with your doctor to manage your cholesterol, be mindful of these 3 dietary considerations:
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Why Do You Have High Triglycerides
However, one big problem arises if we live in westernized societies there is an over abundance of food at all time. If you are reading this right now, you probably live in an area where many different varieties of food are always available. In this kind of food environment, our emotional and instinctual desires override all logical sense, so most of us eat more calories and carbohydrates than we need.
In response to this influx in calories, the cells become stuffed with so much energy that they reject the signal to take more energy in that they receive from insulin . This is otherwise known as insulin resistance, and this causes a cascade of hormonal changes that increase blood sugar and triglyceride levels.
On top of that, carbohydrate consumption stimulates hepatic lipogenesis independent of insulin signaling.
What all of this means is that eating excess calories increases your chances of having high triglycerides levels and eating excess carbohydrates increases triglyceride levels, especially if those carbohydrates are coming from fructose and other processed sugars.
Hold on. What about the fat?
We are talking about triglycerides a type of fat. How could I talk about calories and carbohydrates and neglect to mention fat as a contributor to high triglyceride levels as well? Well, there is a good reason for that.
How A Keto Diet May Influence Cholesterol
There has been some research done on low-carbohydrate diets and their effects on cardiovascular health. It can be hard to draw specific conclusions on the topic, though, because many of the studies are short term , are of a small sample size, and examine different variations of very-low-carb diets.
Nevertheless, we are starting to understand a little bit more about how very-low-carbohydrate, or ketogenic, diets may affect cholesterol levels. Below is a summary of some of the research studies.
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What Is Cholesterol
Cholesterol is a type of fat that is absolutely essential for human life. One of the biggest nutritional misconceptions is that eating cholesterol is bad for you . Cholesterol is not only good, its vital!
Cholesterol plays many essential roles in your body:
- Supports the membranes of every cell
- Makes important hormones such as estrogen, progesterone, and vitamin D
- Repairs damaged cells
- Insulates your nervous system
- Protects against inflammation
Your body makes around 75% of its cholesterol on its own. You get the other 25% from food like eggs, poultry, dairy, and red meat.2