keto diet after 50

How Does the Keto Diet Work? It’s a partial fast. Typically after you eat carbs, your blood sugar goes up, and that sugar powers the body’s cells. But when you don’t eat carbs for a while, your blood sugar runs dry, and the liver begins using stored body fat for fuel. It’s like a back-up system for your body. This process is called ketosis. Because the keto diet is not a full fast, your body still has an alternative source of energy, and you can maintain lean muscle mass. Foods You Can Eat on the Keto Diet When you're on the keto diet, you’ll eat a high-fat, moderate-protein, low-carb diet. If you do this carefully and consistently for 2-3 weeks, your body will enter into a state of ketosis. The keto diet uses a ratio of macronutrients (fat, protein, and carbs). Typical ratios used are 4:1 or 3:1, meaning your diet will be made up of 4 or 3 grams of fat for every 1 gram of protein and carbohydrate combined. This equals about 70% to 80% fat and 20% to 30% protein plus carbohydrate. For a typical 2000-calorie diet, this amounts to roughly 165 grams fat, 75 grams protein, and 40 grams carbohydrate. The foods you can eat on a keto diet include: Nuts Seeds Cheese Dairy products Greek yogurt Veggies Eggs Small amounts of meat and fish Foods to Avoid on the Keto Diet The diet asks you to avoid high-carbohydrates foods. Some of these are: Fruits. (Berries may be okay in small amounts, because of their high nutritional value.) Refined and whole grains, and starches (such as breads, cereals, pasta, rice, wheat, rye, barley, potatoes, starchy vegetables) Beans and legumes Processed foods (like cereal, microwave-ready meals, and most fast food) Benefits of the Keto Diet One thing many people will notice first on the diet is weight loss. But much of that is water weight. Sugar is stored in your body and bonded with water. So, when you start cutting carbs, your body uses the sugar and releases the water, creating the appearance of weight loss. Aside from dropping pounds, other benefits of the keto diet include: Blood sugar control. The diet is linked to lower blood sugar. Heart health. The keto diet can improve total cholesterol levels and sometimes boost the level of “good” (HDL) cholesterol. This may help lower the risk of getting heart disease.