Keto Diet

[Magpies]

I'm curious as to whether there is any firm evidence that a ketogenic diet can make 'fatty liver' better or worse. Several health websites claim the diet can improve the condition, but I haven't found any firm evidence one way or the other. I'm talking about the kind of fatty liver disease unconnected with alcohol, of course.

 

[Bill Gates]

I'm curious as to whether there is any firm evidence that a ketogenic diet can make 'fatty liver' better or worse. Several health websites claim the diet can improve the condition, but I haven't found any firm evidence one way or the other. I'm talking about the kind of fatty liver disease unconnected with alcohol, of course.

There is a ketogenic forum and it might be worth putting your query there as there is every chance a member can give you a qualified answer

 

[Bill Gates]

You know the skin tags you get over the years and moles that appear; well one thing I've noticed recently is that the skin tags are shrivelling up and falling off and likewise the moles. Just a moment ago I felt a spot on my upper lip and scraped my finger nail over it and it popped out. Then I realised it was a mole I've had since whenever I can remember.

 

[Fab Foodie]

Thanks for your detailed reply but I think we'll have to agree to disagree on this.

That's OK, everyone is welcome to try what they wish.

I just urge caution. I would say the jury out on Keto at the moment, but that's not to say that it doesn't have some benefits. We ended-up in the 'Low Fat/high Carb' spiral because of some evangelist quoted some 'research' and sold his seemingly obvious story about fat making you fat, to the western world.... As it happens I never agreed with it then nor do I now - at the time I too was arguing against the tide of 'evidence'.

For every pro-something there is much 'evidence' for anti-something, people like to have agendas, Doctors, researchers et al are no different (Vaccines and Autism anyone?)*. There are evangelists on here and elsewherefor x,y,z that whilst enthusiastic, convincing and well-meaning are not qualified to promote or advise others** (antivaxxers on the interwebs) Hell I might be one too...
There is good research and poor research and anecdata. There are myriad conspiracy theories and I don't buy them either.

Right now I see no wider acceptance of Keto in any community/nation/pro-sport etc. suggesting this is method for improved health and life.
I would rather look at the big/global picture (a kind of meta-experiment) which I think tells an important story about diets, lifestyles and and health.



*For this I recommend the 'Angry Chef' and 'Bad Science'...

**I am not a Doctor, nor a Nutritionist (though my Daughter is). As a Food Technologist with a degree in Biochemistry with some 35 years of working in the global food R&D and industry, I have spent a lot of time watching ideas/trends/diets/hea;lth advice come and go, attended conferences and seminars on health/nutrition, followed eating and lifestyle trends, and now have to listen to my far more learned daughter. One soon starts to realise that many modern health issues are a western/first world illness caused by simple over-consumption of heavily processed food, foods high in simple sugars and empty calories and insufficient diversity of natural foodstuffs and fibres. Restrictive diets in any shape are form are not the answer either (and that includes veganism - shock horror).

Good luck, report back.

 

[Milzy]

Diet Diet Diet BS, train hard and you can still eat chocolate, bread drink beers & be lean. Just need fair portions & consistency in training.
Good day.

 

[vickster]

Diet Diet Diet BS, train hard and you can still eat chocolate, bread drink beers & be lean. Just need fair portions & consistency in training.
Good day.

What's training got to do with it? For what? The OP has another thread about training, but I don't think it's him doing the racing?
Pretty sure pro athletes in training do monitor what they are eating pretty carefully as part of their preparation

 

[Milzy]

What's training got to do with it? For what? The OP has another thread about training, but I don't think it's him doing the racing?
Pretty sure pro athletes in training do monitor what they are eating pretty carefully as part of their preparation

Who's a pro athlete on here? Regular exercise and a balanced diet is all you need. Think I'll leave these guys to argue about their fad diets and be insulting to one another instead of waking anymore sleeping Giants.

 

[vickster]

Who's a pro athlete on here? Regular exercise and a balanced diet is all you need. Think I'll leave these guys to argue about their fad diets and be insulting to one another instead of waking anymore sleeping Giants.

You referred specifically to training though and being able to eat and drink anything if train hard enough. That’s very different to having a healthy and balanced lifestyle
I take regular exercise for example but I’m not ‘training’

 

[Milzy]

You referred specifically to training though and being able to eat and drink anything if train hard enough. That’s very different to having a healthy and balanced lifestyle
I take regular exercise for example but I’m not ‘training’

If you're doing plenty of exercise you don't need to worry as much as a sofa surfer would do.

 

[vickster]

If you're doing plenty of exercise you don't need to worry as much as a sofa surfer would do.

Indeed, probably true but you didn’t say that

 

[Ming the Merciless]

If you're doing plenty of exercise you don't need to worry as much as a sofa surfer would do.

I’ve never stood on my sofa and struck a surfing pose. Maybe something to try.

 

[Milzy]

I’ve never stood on my sofa and struck a surfing pose. Maybe something to try.

Put Beach boys music on very loud, but don't wipe out by falling off.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Put Beach boys music on very loud, but don't wipe out by falling off.

Could open the windows right now and get that sea spray feeling as well.

 

[Bill Gates]

Diet Diet Diet BS, train hard and you can still eat chocolate, bread drink beers & be lean. Just need fair portions & consistency in training.
Good day.

You might like to check out the start of this thread. Prof Tim Noakes was an elite marathon runner who wrote the book on loading up on carbs before an endurance event. Decades later he kept up his fitness regime and was still getting fat on high carb diet. It's not the exercise. Now he totally believes he was 100% wrong. Please if you've got time check out the video clips on the first page.

 

[srw]

Threads like this advocating unusual restrictive diets always become pseudo-science quickly - and this one's no exception.

So far as I can tell (and I'm no scientist but I've read a fair bit and have a nose for bullshit) there are only three things to remember when it comes to diet.

1. Some physics - the law of the conversation of energy means that the only way to lose weight is to consume fewer calories than you expend and the only way to gain weight is to consume more calories than you expend.

2. Some evolutionary biology - we evolved to consume an opportunistic but omnivorous diet. Our bodies are machines that are optimised to consume more calories than we need when it's available, and from any source at all, so that we can survive what were historically inevitable periods of famine. We also evolved big brains and efficient bodies - so that the bulk of our food energy goes on keeping us alive, and the marginal extra amount we can burn by exercise or training is relatively small.

3. Some psychology - we find it very difficult to resist marketing or cravings and incredibly difficult to change habits - especially when we are voluntarily starving ourselves (which is what a weight-loss diet is trying to do).

By all means try and lose weight by pretending that you're on a keto diet (you're probably not) or go vegan or cut out milk or gluten or use intermittent fasting - but unless you're one of the very small minority of people for whom cutting out a particular kind of food is a medical necessity all you're doing is using restrictive eating as a method of cutting your calorie intake relative to your activity levels. Which is fine until that restrictive eating gets in the way of other things you want to achieve - like cycling, or socialising, or enjoying eating.

As it happens I'm currently having some success losing weight by tracking my food, having no alcohol and no cakes or biscuits - but I'm not going to pretend it's a long-term solution. In fact, when I reach a goal weight I will have a different challenge, of eating the right amount to maintain weight.