What Is Ketosis? Why Do You Want It?

Ketosis is a completely natural metabolic state that occurs  when enough glucose isn’t available in our body to produce energy .Then instead of glucose it burns our body fat and converted it into a substance called ketones ,which are used as an alternative fuel source for energy.


Ketosis is a very powerful and highly effective way to reduce your weight very fast.
Because ketosis burns our body fat for its processing.

It is also an effective way to control your blood sugar levels. With controlled blood sugar levels, you will experience less hunger and
cravings. Paired with an adequate protein and high fat intake, you will feel both
satisfied and satiated by the diet.

Not only that  ketosis has many several beneficial effects which I have listed below :

• Improved immune system
• Sounder, more restful sleep
• Eliminated heartburn
• Mental clarity
• Less oxidative stress
• Reduces triglycerides
• Slowed aging due to reduction in free radical production

• Lowered seizures in epileptic childs
• Lowered blood pressure
• Natural hunger and appetite control
• Better fertility
• Increased your sex drive
• Prevention of traumatic brain injury
• Increased HDL (good) cholesterol
• Lowered or eliminated small LDL particles
• Improve energy levels and solve chronic fatigue etc.

Conditions For Ketosis :

Ketosis happens  when your body doesn’t have sufficient glucose  ( primary source of fuel as well as energy )

1. During fasting or starvationl
2. If you  follow ketogenic(low-carb) diet or keto diet to lose weight.

Relation between Ketosis and Keto Diet :

We know that ketosis occurs when our body consume lowered glucose levels.

Glucose,  the primary source of  energy for our body’s cells and it mainly comes from high-carb based foods which we eat.

But when you follow  ketogenic diet then your body consume low-carb.

Because ketogenic diet or keto diet which contains low-carb,moderate-protein, high-fat(75% Fats,20% Protein, 5% Carbohydrates ).

And so your body doesn’t have enough carb (carbohydrates ) to produce glucose levels in your blood stream.
Conversely, amount of fat continuously increases  during keto dieting as it contains high-fat  (75%).

Normally glucose level go down and then our nutritional system searching for a secondary fuel source  (ketones ) to produce energy for us.

In this condition ketosis take place and it burns our stored fats [which is coming from ketogenic diet as it high-fat (75%) based diet ] into a substance called ketones, alternative fuel source for energy production.
So we can define keto diet as below :
A keto diet is any diet in which the body is producing ketones at a level
high enough to contribute meaningfully to the body’s energy needs.

Remeber, ketones are
not some kind of toxic substance in your body that you need to avoid at all costs.

Finally you see that  ketogenic diet is a diet which forces our body toward ketosis.

Ketogenic diets have been used since the
1920s to very effectively control seizures in refractory childhood epilepsy.

This version of the ketogenic diet uses a four-to-one ratio of fat to combined protein
and carbohydrate.

Its association with a century-old therapeutic seizure treatment, along with Dr.
Atkins’ use of the “k” word in describing his low-carb, high-fat nutritional
approach, have led some to label the ketogenic diet as an “extreme” diet.

There are many keto diet plans  just like 21 days keto diet meal plan,28 days  keto meal plan etc.

Ketosis occurs when you choice keto foods  in your breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

 You can get here +24 yummy foods for keto diet.

If you want to go in ketosis through keto diet then you have need to check out grocery list @@@ to prepare Keto Recipes.



Ketosis is not a very common concept within mainstream health
circles, and it’s definitely not often talked about in a positive light. If it is
discussed in the media or by health authorities, it’s generally within a negative
context .

In a single word ketosis is most complex.

But we will attempt to calm any lingering fears you may have about going keto by
explaining in simple English what it really is and why it’s actually not a bad
thing at all.

What Is Ketosis ?

Ketosis (pronounced
KEY-TOE-SIS) is a metabolic state that happens when our body consume a very low-carb, moderate-protein, high-fat diet that causes your body to switch from using
glucose as its primary source of fuel to running on ketones. Ketones themselves
are produced when the body burns fat, and they’re primarily used as an
alternative fuel source when glucose isn’t available.

In other words, our body changes from a  sugar-burner to a fat-burner.

Depending on your current diet and lifestyle choices, becoming keto-adapted can
take as little as a few days and or as much as several weeks or even months.So
“being in ketosis” just means that you are burning fat. Patience and persistence
are an absolute must as you pursue ketosis.

If you have ever fasted by skipping breakfast after a good night’s sleep, then
you likely have begun producing trace amounts of ketones in your blood.

If you consume a diet with very few carbohydrates, moderate levels of protein, and
plenty of healthy saturated and monounsaturated fats, then these ketones will
begin to increase until they dominate the way your body is fueled, to the point
that very little glucose is needed to function.

This article will clearly explain why
this is a very good and even preferable state for your body to be in.

And it makes
sense that we were designed to eat this way, just as our hunter-gatherer ancestors
once did.


Let me be very clear about something I know you’re probably already
thinking about: yes, this is a completely normal metabolic state. In fact,
according to pediatric physician Dr. Mary Newport, newborn babies who are
exclusively breastfed will go into a state of ketosis within twelve hours of birth,and ketones provide about 25 percent of their energy needs. Actually, 10 percent
of the fats in full-term human breast milk is composed of medium-chain
triglycerides (MCTs), which the liver converts to ketones. This is one reason
why virtually every infant formula sold on the market today contains MCT oil
and coconut oil, which “mimic the fats in breast milk.” Dr. Newport says this is a
clear indication that “from birth, and possibly before that, ketones play an
important role.”

Dr. William Wilson, a family practitioner and expert on nutrition and brain
function, explained that “throughout most of our evolutionary history, humans
used both glucose and ketone bodies for energy production.” He said that our
Paleolithic ancestors used glucose as their body’s preferred fuel when non-animal food was available, but during periods of food shortage or when animal-based foods were their primary source of calories, want to take a wild guess at
what was sustaining them? You guessed it—ketones! “Thus, our ancestors spent
most of their time in a state of ketosis,” Dr. Wilson concluded. He added, “If our
early ancestors hadn’t developed a way to use ketones for energy, our species
would have ended up on Darwin’s short list eons ago!”

 The point of sharing these formulas with you is to demonstrate the great
similarity in the makeup of these molecules—they are all composed of the same
elements (carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen), and they are all about the same size.
This allows the body to use all of them as sources of energy. We shouldn’t fear
one over the other. When you are a sugar-burner, your body uses glucose as the
fuel molecule of choice to give you energy to function. But when you shift your
body over to being a fat-burner instead, the fuel molecule of choice becomes
ketones. Regardless of whether you are using glucose or ketones as the primary
fuel, your body still burns other fuels, like fatty acids and alcohol.

• So why do you want to reduce the amount of sugar that you burn and transition to a state of ketosis?

• What benefits do you get from using ketonebodies as your primary source of energy instead of glucose?

That really is the
million-dollar question.

Once you understand why reducing sugar-burning and
increasing ketosis can help with certain aspects of your health, you will want to
pursue it wholeheartedly.

Ketones are actually the preferred fuel source for the muscles, heart, liver, and
brain. These vital organs do not handle carbohydrates very well; in fact, they
become damaged when we consume too many carbs.

Ketosis have many beneficial effects on our body which are described above include blood sugar levels control, body weight loss,natural hunger suppression etc.
I could go on and on, but I think you get the idea. Ketosis is something you
may want to pursue if you are dealing with weight or health issues and you’re
not getting the results you desire with your current strategy. Later on in the site ,
we will discuss various  health conditions that are dramatically improved by a
ketogenic diet,  responding even better to it than to some of the best medications
available. It’s exciting to think that you could see such amazing progress using
nutrition rather than a drug.

Why do you want Ketosis (short):

Now you can see how ketosis or ketogenic diet brings many advantages on several fields.

But here you can see only main things.

Because we have already discussed about advantages of ketosis or ketogenic diet in more details in a separate excellent article.




1.Effects on Blood Sugar :
Ketosis is also an effective way to control your blood sugar. When you eat
something high in carbohydrates, your body produces insulin to get rid of all the
sugar in your blood. But since there is already carbs to be used for fuel, your
body will be storing fat cells and not releasing any to be burned. So by reducing
carbs and being in ketosis, your insulin levels will be regulated at a lower level,
and your body will want to access your body fat for fuel instead. In most cases
this means impressive weight-loss!

2.Effects On Epilepsy :
Dr. Keith Runyan-
In the case of epilepsy, a state of nutritional ketosis is effective in the treatment
of seizures while avoiding the side effects of antiepileptic medications designed
to accomplish the same results.

Interestingly, valproic acid is a medication used
in the treatment of epilepsy and several mood disorders that is an inhibitor of
histone deacetylase, as is the ketone beta-hydroxybutyrate.

Histone deacetylase
inhibitors are currently being investigated for their anticancer and antiaging
properties.

This may suggest an actual mechanism for the antiseizure properties
of beta-hydroxybutyrate.


3.Beneficial effects on Diabetes Mellitus (Type 2 Diabetes):
Fears about using a low-carb, high-fat diet to treat diabetes don’t make any
sense at all when you consider that for thousands and thousands of years, the
human diet didn’t include much sugar or starch. In fact, in the late 1800s and
early 1900s, a low-carb, high-fat diet was actually the primary treatment for
diabetes! Insulin was discovered in 1921, but before that, a diet of 70 percent fat,
22 percent protein, and 8 percent carbohydrate was advocated by people like
Frederick M. Allen and Eliot P. Joslin—top luminaries in the world of medicine
—to treat diabetes.

4.Ketosis and Cardiovascular Disease, Metabolic Syndrome, and
Contributing Factors:

Dr. Ron Rosedale -
For over two decades I have been using a low-carb, high-fat diet to treat very
sick diabetic and cardiovascular patients.

I have noticed a vast improvement in
diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and obesity in nearly all of my patients on the
diet.


5.Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS):
PCOS is a common hormonal disorder that affects women of reproductive ageand is a major cause of infertility.

A clinical study on PCOS was held in 2005 on 5 women who were put on low-carb, high-fat, ketogenic diet for 6 months.

After that doctors find improvements in their hormonal measurements.

Also find that they all  had an average weight loss of 12%.

In fact, two of the five women became pregnant during the study
despite previously experiencing infertility problems.


6.Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS):
People with IBS tend to experience stomach discomfort,
pain, and bloating.

In June, 2009 , Clinical Gastroenterology and
Hepatology looked at thirteen patients who used  ketogenic
diet for diarrhea-predominant IBS over a 4 week and saw an
improvement in stool frequency, stool consistency, abdominal pain, and quality
of life.

And we know that Ketosis is  occurred by ketogenic diet or keto diet.

 The ketogenic diet is giving people suffering with this uncomfortable
condition hope.


7.GERD and Heartburn :
Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), generally experienced as heartburn.

A study published in the July 27, 2006, issue of the journal
Digestive Diseases and Sciences, featuring contributions from Dr. Eric Westman,
measured stomach acidity after eight study participants with GERD were placed
on a low-carb, high-fat, ketogenic diet. Each of them had a small tube threaded
into the nose and down to their stomach for a period of twenty-four hours to
measure stomach and esophageal acidity before and after changing the diet. Over
just three to six days on the ketogenic diet, all eight individuals showed
improvement in the severity of their heartburn and a reduction in the acidity at
the lower esophagus—which is usually the cause of heartburn. They found relief
simply by making changes to their diet.



8.Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD):

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is commonly found in individuals
with obesity.
It also be recovered from ketosis.



9.How Ketosis Brings Weight Loss:

Ketosis is also an excellent way to lose body fat.

Ketones are merely a by-product of burning fat for fuel.

In other words, burning fat generates ketones at
the same time.

When you are keto-adapted, you generate energy from both your
body fat and dietary fat.

However, when you consume excess carbohydrates,
they turn into body fat, which cannot be easily accessed for fuel.

This is why you
want to be in a ketogenic state—it’s fat-burning nirvana, baby!

So,a low-carb, high-fat, ketogenic diet is a very powerful and highly effective
fat-burning diet that’s especially useful for anyone who is overweight or obese.

When I lost 180 pounds in 2004, most of the weight I dropped was in the form of
body fat.

My body was functioning very efficiently on fatty acids and ketone
bodies because I wasn’t feeding it the high levels of carbohydrates that would
have kept it working as a sugar-burner.

In our other article we have fully discussed about how to keto diet reduce body weight very fast

And also in a other article  we’ll share more about how
to determine what level of carbohydrate intake is best to get you into ketosis.

Ketosis Does Not Always Equal Fat Loss

A person on a keto diet or ketogenic diet can have extremely high levels of ketones and never lose an
ounce if they eat too much.

It is Granted, overeating while in a situation of ketosis is very difficult
to do, because one of the beneficial effects of ketones is that they significantly dampen
your appetite.


To know more about it plz click above link which I have given starting of "why do you want Ketosis ".

What happens when my body adapts?

As you begin to adapt to ketosis, your body will begin to deplete its glycogen
stores.

Your body is normally trained to use this cheap, fast and easy-to-process
energy source, and it needs some time to get used to running off fat as its
primary source of fuel.

To be blunt, you may feel like crap while adapting.


You may experience nausea, headaches, dizziness, mental fog and other flu-like
symptoms.

This phenomenon is often called ‘keto-flu’ or ‘carb-flu.

Many times
this is the result of your electrolytes being flushed out along with water weight.


If you drink some traditional chicken or beef broth you can replenish your
electrolytes and ease your symptoms. It is also incredibly important to drink
plenty of water!

Your water intake will keep you hydrated and it will help flush
out excess ketones.


Fun fact: The body can excrete up to 100 calories worth of ketones per day.


This total adaptation process takes about three weeks to happen.

During this time
you may be continuing an exercise regimen or you may even be starting a new
one.

You may find that you don’t have as much endurance and strength as you
are used to, and this is normal.

Once you are fully keto-adapted, your body will
be trained to operate on fat as its primary source of fuel, and you will see an
improvement in your energy levels.

Many even report having more energy, and
more stable energy levels while in ketosis.

How do I guarantee I’m in ketosis?

An easy way to know for sure you are in ketosis is to use ketostix.

These little
sticks can be found in most pharmacies and even online.

They only test forexcess ketones, so they aren’t always the most reliable, but if you see a positive
on the stick you are guaranteed to be in ketosis.

Other signs of ketosis might be;

• a funny taste in your mouth,
• your urine will smell different or
• you’re incredibly thirsty.

But if you have been eating 20g of carbs a day for at least 3 days, you are
more than likely in ketosis.

I don’t think I can give up carbs!
Once you get over the initial hump of carb cravings, they go away! Since keto
will stabilize your blood sugar, it will also stabilize your hunger and cravings.

Since your body is now adjusting to a low-sugar diet, you will find that your
taste buds will change as well and you can now easily detect the sugar content in
certain foods.

Items such as carrots and dark chocolate now taste sweeter.

The longer you stick to keto and the stricter you are, the less you will miss carbs.

Carbs and sugar are truly addictive, and like anyone else trying to break an
addiction, the best method is to cut out the source of the problem.

How to Test Ketones level:

There are three types of ketones Acetoacetate (AcAc), Beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB) and Acetone.

1. AcAc , a type of primary ketones present in urine.
2. BHB, this ketone body circulates in bloodstream and gives majority of ketone energy to the body.
3. And last one,Acetone available in our breath.

Acetoacetate  (AcAc) which get converted into two other ketones, beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB) and acetone.

To measure 3 types of these ketones, There are three different testing method.

• Urine strip is a most common testing tool to measure ketones in urine.It is also easy to measure as well as inexpensive in cost but doesn’t provides the accurately.

• Breath ketone detection device Breathalyzer, is used to measure acetone.It is probably a another common testing tool which is more expensive than urine strip.

• Unfortunately, there is disagreement over whether breath ketone meters can give a reliable sense of blood ketone levels, and consistency of results is considered poor.

Blood ketone measurements are the most accurate but least convenient testing
method.
You can measure it upon waking, after each meal or snack, and before
bed.

A good level of ketosis will
correlate for most people with a BHB level of 1.5 to 3.0 mmol/L

Ketosis and Ketoacidosis :

So if ketosis is so desirable, then why has there been such deafening silence or
even fierce negativity on the subject from health authorities?

It really has
received an undeserved negative reputation, which is especially unfortunate
considering all the countless lives that it could improve.


As with many things in
life, it comes down to fear and a simple misunderstanding of what ketosis really
means.

Part of the problem lies in the word ketosis itself, which closely resembles
ketoacidosis, a medical term that’s used to describe a life-threatening condition
in type 1 diabetics.

Many people have a confusion about ketosis and ketoacidosis .

But here I will explain it in easy manner.

Firstly ketosis is a normal metabolic state, while ketoacidosis is a very dangerous metabolic condition which mainly occurs in people of uncontrolled type 1 diabetes.

Ketoacidosis happens when our bloodstream contains high levels of glucose (blood suger) as well as ketones.
Then our blood becomes acidic ,which is very harmful for us.

But this condition is very rear.

Many doctors scoff at the idea of allowing one of their
patients to get into a state of ketosis because they immediately thinkof all the
negative side effects associated with ketoacidosis.

This confusion may have
allowed many patients to remain in a diseased state when they could have seen
tremendous improvements in their health with the use of a ketogenic diet.

It’s a
sad reality that this kind of ignorance happens in the medical profession, with the
very people we trust to be our purveyors of knowledge on health.


Here’s why doctors are so concerned about ketoacidosis: When diabetics do
not get an adequate amount of insulin, their bodies respond as if they are
starving.

Their bodies think there’s no more glucose to be had, either from diet
or glycogen stores, and they switch to burning fat instead and ramp up ketone
production so it can be used as an alternative energy source.

The problem is,
these diabetics aren’t out of glucose—in fact, they have elevated levels of blood
glucose.

Insulin is the hormone that allows glucose into cells, and without it, the
blood sugar has nowhere to go and accumulates in the bloodstream, even as the
body can’t stop making ketones.

Once levels of the blood ketone beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB) approach 20 millimolars, a diabetic patient will get very
sick and may fall into a coma.

Ketoacidosis can even be life-threatening. It’s an
extremely serious thing and certainly should not be messed around with.
But
keep in mind this condition only applies to type 1 diabetics and, very rarely, truly
insulin-dependent type 2 diabetics.

It would be impossible for this sequence of events to happen to non-diabetics.

If you can produce even a small amount of insulin in your body, ketones
naturally remain at safe levels.

As I’ll share about in another article (C9) during my one-year experiment of purposely putting myself into a state of ketosis, I tested my
blood ketone levels twice daily, and the highest reading I ever saw was 6.4
millimolar, less than one-third of the level considered dangerous.

Another key point to keep in mind is that the rise in blood ketone levels that
leads to ketoacidosis in diabetics corresponds with a simultaneous elevation of
blood glucose levels.

But when ketosis is used for therapeutic purposes in
everyone else, blood glucose actually drops.

This is a major difference that
should help put your mind at ease if you are at all concerned about stern
warnings from your doctor.

In the next  article ,   we’ll look at the differences between keto and the
traditional Atkins diet. Some people have made the two synonymous, and there
are quite a few similarities between them. But we’ll help you understand the
subtle but very important differences that set them apart.

If these symptoms are seen, then immediately call your doctor: 
These symptoms are symbol of ketoacidosis.

• Felling very thirsty or a dry mouth
• Belly pain
• Tiredness
• Much peeing
• Breathing problems
• Smelling of breath like fruity

If these symptomsare happens then go to doctor and test your ketones levels as well as sugar level.

Summary :

• Ketogenic diets have traditionally been used to treat epilepsy.
• Low-carb, high-fat diets are often characterized as “extreme,” but they’re not.
• Ketosis causes your body to switch from a sugar-burner to a fat-burner.
• Being in ketosis is a completely normal metabolic state.
• Ketones play an important role in human health from birth.
• Our Paleolithic ancestors were sustained by ketones during food shortages.
• The Inuit recognized the importance of keto-adaptation.
• The molecular formulas for glucose and ketone bodies are very similar.
• Ketones are the preferred fuel source for the muscles, heart, liver, and brain.
• When you’re keto-adapted, your energy comes from body fat and the fat you consume.
• Ketosis is something to consider if you’re dealing with a weight or health issue.
• The term ketosis is unfortunately often confused with ketoacidosis.
• Medical professionals sometimes think—incorrectly—that having ketones in the body is a harmful state.
• Ketoacidosis happens when very high ketones occur simultaneously with very high blood sugar levels.
• Nutritional ketosis happens when elevated ketones occur
• simultaneously with low blood sugar levels.