Everyone has been talking about the ketogenic diet since the dawn of mankind. It is doubtful whether Stone Age man suffered from MS (multiple sclerosis), cancer, diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure. The reasons for this certainly lie in the amount of exercise hunter-gatherers did and their diet. From today’s perspective, the “low to no carb” diet of people in the Stone Age was already extremely trendy.
Back then, this was due to a lack of carbohydrates, or rather the lack of them. Today, the abundance of carbohydrates and the resulting diseases of civilization lead to nutritional strategies that are reminiscent of the “Stone Age diet”. This diet is based almost exclusively on protein and fat and has long been a household name in many competitive sports circles. However, the “ketogenic diet” has been experiencing a renaissance for some time now for various health reasons and benefits.
While in the recent past it was mostly body fat reduction motives and energy production processes that were based on fat, today many recent studies, independent of the pharmaceutical industry, support curative successes in many diseases. Neurological diseases in particular, such as MS (multiple sclerosis), benefit from the ketogenic diet.
Many doctors confirm the positive effects of a ketogenic diet
Dr. Terry Wahls (physician and assistant to the chief of staff of the Veteran Administration Health Care in Iowa City and clinical professor of medicine at the University of Iowa), who has had multiple sclerosis herself since 2000, developed a form of “Stone Age diet” for herself while still in a wheelchair.
After a radical change in diet and a specific exercise program, her MS came to a standstill a year later. She was able to leave her wheelchair again! Terry Wahls is an author and presents this specific, particularly nutrient-rich diet in her book “Treating Multiple Sclerosis Successfully”. It is tailored to patients suffering from MS or other autoimmune diseases.
Another example: Dr. Markus Bock, a Berlin doctor and neuroscientist, was able to demonstrate the therapeutic benefits of a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet for MS patients as part of studies at the Charité hospital in Berlin! But he can also point to several years of significant research into other chronic diseases in the western world.
Ketogenic diet an important key against diseases
But what does ketogenic mean? “Ketogenic” is derived from the so-called ketone bodies, which are formed when no carbohydrates are consumed or when they are greatly reduced. During this metabolic change, the body learns to obtain energy from fat instead of carbohydrates. When the body metabolizes fat, these special molecules, the ketone bodies, are formed. In this case, little insulin is required from the pancreas as there is no glucose to process, which is very useful for diabetics, for example.
Due to the lack of glucose, the body has to look for alternatives for energy production. The state of ketosis (energy from fat) is reached after 3-4 days, with a consumption of less than 50 grams of carbohydrates per day. While the popular low carb diet recommends a carbohydrate proportion of approx. 30 % of the total food volume, the “keto diet” goes much further with only 5-10 %!
Sugar is the evil wolf in sweet sheep’s clothing
The disadvantages of high sugar consumption in terms of health should be well known. Sugar, consumed in excess, is at least as harmful as smoking! Anyone who studies nutrition knows that for a long time fat was considered the culprit for many diseases and obesity.
Even many nutritionists contributed to the demonization of this macronutrient with regard to fat consumption. Today, based on more recent research, findings and studies, the arguments are much more differentiated. Everyone has learned. Fat is no longer the number 1 culprit! It is sugar!
Inzwischen ist die Sensibilität gegenüber dem Zucker in industriell gefertigter Nahrung größer geworden. Ein Zeichen für die Achtsamkeit des Verbrauchers gegenüber Zucker, ist auch, dass Hersteller die Nachfrage nach „Low Carb“ Produkten bedienen und in diesem Segment auf Kundenfang gehen. (zB. Proteinriegel mit wenig Einfachzucker).
Sugar can cause cancer!
There are good reasons to reduce sugar consumption, as this is not only advisable for the diseases mentioned above. Drastic sugar reduction is also of central and often curative importance for the number one widespread disease, cancer. The discovery of the “TKTL1” gene by scientist Dr. Johannes F. Coy can be seen as an important milestone in research into cancer and its causes.
Since the mid-1990s, Coy has worked at the renowned German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg, where his research has established a significant link between a high-sugar diet and the development of some types of tumor and their metastasis.
These results are supported and confirmed by other research centers worldwide, but in particular by John Hopkins University in the USA. The “TKTL1” gene is activated in the cancer cell and is, so to speak, the trigger for pathological changes. The most important fuel for this gene is sugar! Sugar triggers a fermentation process in the cancer cells that destroys the healthy surrounding tissue and paralyzes the body’s own immune system. A cancer cell needs 20-30 times more sugar than a healthy cell! The aim, according to Dr. Coy, must be to deprive the fermenting cancer cells of the basis for their aggressive and destructive behavior with a low-carbohydrate diet.
Sugar makes you hungry for sugar – the “blood sugar carousel rides a rollercoaster”
Low-carbohydrate diets are preventative anyway, but they can also have a positive influence on existing illnesses. In my work as a personal trainer, it is always important for me to emphasize the importance of maintaining a constant blood sugar level and avoiding a rapid drop in blood sugar levels after eating.
This is because a rapid drop in blood sugar quickly produces further hunger, often a craving for sugar – a vicious circle! According to the Federal Office for Agriculture and Food, every German consumes an average of 42 kg of sugar per year. Consumption is not the same as being really useful for the body, it should be added.
100 grams of sugar contain 400 kcal, which is another important reason to be economical here. If it absolutely has to be sweetened, then switch to stevia, agave or maple syrup, for example, which ensure better blood sugar stability. Chocolate is also possible if the cocoa content is over 70% and therefore contains less sugar. It is also important to avoid ready-made products because important biological active ingredients are destroyed by processing and made palatable by sugar (e.g. ketchup).
Sugar doesn’t just make you sweet, it makes you sour!
Unfortunately, sugar not only brings sweetness, but also acidity, mainly due to the fermentation processes. This means that overconsumption can lead to acidification of the body. In view of these findings, it is important to reconsider your own sugar consumption .
Of course, every positive effect, even the very high-protein and high-fat ketogenic diet, has side effects and is not suitable for everyone. For health and ethical reasons! Excessive consumption of omega 6 fatty acids is still unfavorable.
It is well known and essential that omega-6 fatty acids must be consumed in the correct ratio to omega-3 fatty acids. A good ratio of omega 6 to omega 3 is 2:1 to 5:1 and should be aimed for. This can be achieved through a high consumption of healthy vegetable fats and foods with a high omega 3 content.
In any case, it is worth taking a look at the many benefits of the ketogenic diet in general and in particular. However, sugar is more threatening than fat and the benefits of greatly reducing simple carbohydrates in existing diseases are very high. The Stone Age people may not have lived very long, but with the ketogenic diet they were perhaps even healthier in many areas during their lifetime than many people of the same age today. soulboxer 🥊🙏❤️