Keto diet weight loss may come with a hidden cost

"The results raise fresh questions about whether the diet is safe or effective for improving metabolic health over extended periods. Although the ketogenic diet was first developed as a treatment for epilepsy, it has become widely popular in recent years for weight loss and for managing conditions such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. In this study, scientists used mice to explore how the diet affects metabolism over time, with results pointing to potentially harmful changes in how the body handles fats and carbohydrates."

"The ketogenic diet is built around extremely high fat intake and very limited carbohydrates. It was originally introduced to help control seizures in people with epilepsy. By sharply reducing carbohydrates, the diet pushes the body into a state known as ketosis, in which fat is broken down into ketone bodies that serve as an alternative fuel for the brain. This metabolic shift helps stabilize brain activity and reduce seizures, similar to the effects of fasting."

Mice fed a long-term ketogenic diet remained lean while developing fatty liver disease and experiencing dangerous blood sugar spikes, indicating impaired carbohydrate handling. The diet’s extreme high-fat, very low-carbohydrate composition forces metabolism into ketosis, producing ketone bodies as alternative brain fuel and mimicking fasting. Short-term benefits on weight can mask progressive metabolic harm when the diet continues over extended periods. Prolonged ketogenic feeding altered how the body processes fats and carbohydrates, suggesting that weight control on such a regimen can coexist with worsening liver health and volatile glycemic regulation.

Read at ScienceDaily