Basics of a Low Carb Diet

Dr. Kavita | October 6, 2010

Low carb diet has been designed by many experts to reduce the blood sugar and fat storage of overweight and diabetic people. This is not just applicable for diabetic patients and obese individuals alone; it can be a good solution for weight loss and maintaining normal body weight. Low-carb diets have been popular for decades as an easy way to lose weight fast. Aside from that, it also brings great benefits on lowering cholesterol levels and lower blood pressure.

Carbohydrates are compounds that are mostly found in starchy foods such as grain, rice, potatoes and a lot more. Once carbohydrates are taken into the body, it will be metabolized and form glucose as its end product. Glucose is a main source of energy for cells which is essential to sustain daily activities and body system’s functions. Low carb diet is helpful because excess glucose that is not converted to energy will eventually stored as fat deposits in the body. This is a basic principle of low carb diet, the lesser the carb consumed, the lesser the fat storage.

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Low carb diet has been proven effective for weight loss by numbers of scientific research. The use of low carb diet has obtained a lot of great testimonies from people who have tremendous weight loss in a particular time. It has been quite helpful to diabetic patients who are at risk for developing serious complications related to carb intake. However, there are certain points and important disadvantages that come along with low carb diet.

Glucose is the main food of the brain. Brain function mostly depends on the glucose level of the blood. A lack of carbohydrates intake by low carb diet would result to inefficient supply of glucose to the brain that will cause decrease brain function resulting to several symptoms such as lethargy ad weakness. However, it does not entirely mean that low car diet is not advisable. Low carb diet would mean decreasing the amount of carb rather than completely depriving yourself from carb. A maximum of 150gm of carb is enough to attain normal brain function.

Another downside of low carb diet is that when there is little glucose to be converted into energy, the body makes use of muscle fat to compensate the energy needed by the system. Energy that comes from burned muscles and fats will produce ketones, a harmful compound that can cause severe headache, nausea, vomiting and lethargy.  The accumulation of ketones in the blood stream will cause fatal effects on individuals. Choose a low carb diet that can adequately supply your body with enough energy and prevent these disadvantages.

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