The ketogenic diet is making people talk about it! Do you finally want to understand what it is and what it is for? Then this article is for you. The Culture Nutrition editorial team has prepared a summary for you.
The ketogenic diet: what is it?
To put it simply, the ketogenic diet consists of adopting a diet low in carbohydrates and high in fat.
Its interest is to reproduce the mechanisms of fasting. Carbohydrates are the body’s main source of energy. By depriving it of substrate, the ketogenic diet forces the body to draw from the reserves of fatty tissue to produce ketone bodies. They are the ones who will serve as an alternative substrate.
Why is the ketogenic diet trendy?
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The ketogenic diet has had several names. In the 1980s, it was known as the Mayo diet, after the name of the Mayo Clinic in the United States where it was developed. His promise was then a drastic weight loss (up to 10 kg in 14 days). It then fell into oblivion a little bit, but it comes back in force, for 3 reasons:
- It corresponds to the current trend: zero sugar. We talked about it in our article « Sugarland: the film that sheds light on hidden sugars ». Indeed, sugars are becoming persona non grata in the global nutritional landscape.
- It is the new trendy slimming diet. We talk about « keto diet », the diet to lose weight by eating fat…. It is a question of favouring monounsaturated fatty acids (avocado, olive, coconut…). So it’s quite tempting! However, it is quite restrictive and not without side effects if it is not accompanied by a dietician-nutritionist.
- It has beneficial effects in the management of many diseases, and this is the most interesting.
The ketogenic diet and its therapeutic effects
Epilepsy, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, some cancers, diabetes…. Here is an overview of the diseases for which the ketogenic diet has or would have beneficial effects. Its effectiveness in spacing seizures in epileptic patients is very real, but we are still trying to understand how it works. The fact that ketones replace carbohydrates as an energy source is probably one of the elements of the answers. But not the only one.
In the case of cancer, cancer cells would be deprived of their substrate (carbohydrates). But here again, research is ongoing.
The « keto » innovations
Innovations are therefore beginning to flourish in the four corners of the nutrition universe.
- In clinical nutrition, TCM oil has been used for many years. At Nutricia, for example, Liquigen is an emulsion of TCM oil prescribed for patients suffering from malabsorption or on a ketogenic diet.
- In nutra, keto innovations are more recent. Coconut oil capsules are available on the market at Bulk Powders with a slimming positioning. A food supplement focused on the intellectual functions of D. Plantes (MCT* derived from coconut, zinc, vitamins B5 and B6). Or Cetolike (a MCT oil) at Therascience for « a controlled ketosis to support cognitive functions ».
- In food, cooking with new fats is becoming very popular. Coconut and avocado oils are the most represented, as in Active Vital or Primal Kitchen.
To conclude: keto and inno
Developing innovations related to the ketogenic diet can therefore be the subject of very different positioning:
- Clinical nutrition positioning with therapeutic benefits on neurological pathologies
- Or a more mainstream positioning on weight management or cognitive functions
In any case, you will have understood that venturing into this field requires the development of nutritional information, because a ketogenic diet is not without consequences. A simple example with coconut oil: it is not to be considered as an oil like any other because it contains much more saturated fatty acids. So work well on the content associated with your products and labelling.
* Medium Chain Triglycerides
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