Comparing lower carbohydrate and Ketogenic type eating plans
This post will explain the general process of nutrient assimilation and the various drawbacksfollowing a “traditional food pyramid” or “my plate” diets recommended by the FDA vs. a low
carbohydrate diet proposed by a multitude of researchers. While these low carb researchers have
found slight variations in their diets or eating styles, there are a great many similarities found as well.
Barry Sears’ “Enter the Zone” diet, David Seamen’s “Deflame diet”, the Ketogenic diet and of
course Loren Cordain’s “Paleo” diet, all contend that lowering carbohydrate intake can alleviate
medical conditions like type two diabetes, chronic inflammatory disorders, nonalcoholic fatty liver
disease, hypertension, fat free mass (FFM) and coronary artery disease.
It is my hope that you as the reader gain
appreciation of how our meal choices affect our overall health, body image,
satiety, energy level and even lab levels. Armed with this new information you may change your views of certain foods dramatically.
Background
In analyzing the effects of various low carbohydrate
eating plans, including but not limited to the ketogenic diet, we must first
discuss metabolism. Metabolism is a
chemical process in which the body receives nutrition. This assimilation of nutrients results in the
delivery of macro and micro nutrients to the individual cells, so that cellular
metabolism can occur. This process
provides energy in the form of ATP, building blocks for muscles (amino acids),
the materials needed for the framework of the body (collagen, bone minerals) as
well as the walls of each individual cell (fatty acids).
Metabolic
processes
The first step in carbohydrate metabolism is
glycolysis, this chemical reaction allows the body to utilize the simple sugars
(glucose) or store them. The body
utilizes a glucose in a variety of ways.
It’s used as a primary source of energy for our movements (glycolysis,
Krebs cycle and electron transport chain), and energy source for brain cell
function (exclusively). When taken in excess, it’s combined to form
glycogen(glycogenesis), during that process insulin is released and the liver
later stores the glycogen in the fatty cells.
Fat
metabolism occurs if there’s a lack of available carbohydrates to
metabolize. There are a variety of
reasons this may occur; fasting, a low carbohydrate diet and untreated diseases
like diabetes. The result of fat
catabolism is glycerol and fatty acids, but we should keep in mind that high
insulin levels inhibit fat catabolism.
Nevertheless, the body synthesizes enzymes called lipases, and maintains
the ability to catabolize fat in the correct environment. Fat catabolism is similar to carbohydrate catabolism,
energy production from fat also occurs in the mitochondria via the citric acid
cycle & the electron transport chain.
To break down the fatty acid chains, the body utilizes a process called
beta-oxidation, which cleaves the long fatty acid chain groups and converts
them to usable segments.
Protein
metabolism the least plentiful source of energy in the traditional “food
pyramid”. The traditional role of
protein consumption is anabolism, which is responsible for synthesizing the
proteins and needed for our soft tissues.
The body can produce various proteins (and amino acids), but a select
few several amino acids must be consumed (essential amino acids). Therefore,
but all not only is protein essential to a diet it can also serve both; as a
source of energy, and a source of building blocks.
Lower
carbohydrate eating plans
In
Barry Sears is Enter the Zone diet, a 40:30:30 caloric intake ratio is utilized
(Carbohydrate: Fat: Protein). Dr. Sears
contends that foods that have lower amounts of sugar or “lower glycemic index”
foods allow for less fluctuations of insulin levels. This in turn lowers cravings as well as
improving wellbeing through reduction in inflammatory responses. Like most diets, the zone diet is dependent
on the individual’s metabolic requirements. BMR is the rate of caloric
expenditure for an individual per day and is reliant upon the individual’s fat
free mass (FFM)(Sears, 1995.). The FDA’s
recommendation for protein is .38 g/lb. FFM, while Dr. Sears calls for .7 to
1g/lb. This makes it a higher protein diet. The amount of fat in this plan is determined
by the caloric intake, and that in turn is reliant on the BRM (Sears, 1995.). The
amount of fat in this diet is also higher than FDA recommendation of 10% (Total
Fat, 2018.). Dr. Sears’ work has been heavily scrutinized, and the results of his
eating plan has had have been impactful on improving FFM (Ebbling, 2007.; Fontani,
2005.; Skoy, 1999.) Dr. Sears also reported that his plan had positive
implications regarding cholesterol and cardiovascular profile factors. The Zone
diet is also been found to improve fasting glucose levels for type II diabetics
(Hamdy, 2008.). As mentioned before, the mechanism in the zone diet is to limit
foods to lean meats, some unsaturated fats and most importantly fibrous or low
glycemic carbohydrates. The increase in protein results in a positive nitrogen
balance (only protein contains nitrogen versus fat and carbohydrates) and an
anabolic state. The lack of carbohydrates also induces the body to metabolize
the fat and protein taken in. Metabolizing fatty acids leads to a slight ketogenic
state. The lack of insulin fluctuations is the reason someone following a Zone
type system would feel satiated, as a spike in insulin has a reactive dip
shortly after (Hyman, 2018) and this dip is why your body craves another meal.
The
brain also has a part to play in how we react to food. There is a concept involving anorexigenic responses, which are triggered by a high
fat diet, and promote satiety (fullness). The hypothalamus controls these types
of responses and Resveratrol (a natural polyphenol that promotes anorexigenic
responses) is present in high protein eating programs (Drummen, 2018.; Safahani,
2017.).
Dr.
Seamen’s DeFlame is another diet or eating system that calls for a reduction in
starchy carbohydrates. The focus is to replace “pro-inflammatory” starchy
carbohydrates with “anti-inflammatory” fibrous carbohydrates and replace trans
fats with unsaturated fats. The
mechanism Dr. Seamen describes is one where glucose causes a hyperglycemic
state, combined with trans fats, resulting in the bacteria in the gut to
release endotoxins. These endotoxins have a detrimental effect on cells causing
them to release inflammatory chemicals. The end result is chronic inflammation
that can cause and contribute to a variety of maladies (Seamen, 2002. ; Totsch,
2015.). The net effect of the DeFlame diet is a de-facto ketogenic state (mild
compared to strict Ketogenic plans). While Dr. Seamen’s aim is to reduce
inflammation, he also alters the metabolic pathways at the same time, resulting
in an anabolic effect. The de flame diet also was shown to decrease fatty liver
disease and type II diabetes, which has been consistent with the variety of
lower carbohydrate type eating programs (Pérez-Guisado, 2011. ; Khondkaryan, 2018.; Drummen, 2018.).
The
Paleo diet is yet another eating program that calls upon ketosis and fatty acid
catabolism by harkening back to our paleolithic roots. This plan features many
ieterations, so a range of protein intake is available. By avoiding starchy, low glycemic index and
processed food, while placing an emphasis on fibrous foods and animal products
(excluding dairy), the individual can maintain a ketogenic state. The Paleo
diet’s main theme is to not consume any food that wouldn’t have available to
our ancestors and to “mimic the pre-agricultural time”, to when we were
hunter-gatherers (Cordain, 2018.). This program has no guidelines, making it
more of a philosophy than a structured program. A study conducted by Pastore et
al. found that after only a 4-month trial on the Paleo diet, the subjects (who
had prior hypercholesteremia) had significantly lowered total cholesterol and
triglycerides, and even improved FFM (2015).
The
Ketogenic eating plan features fat metabolism more than any other program. This
plan is best used for lowering the amount of insulin and is not ideal for long
term usage as it has been found to raise lipoprotein content (Kwiterovich,
2003). This plan should be supervised and performed for specific medical
outcomes in question (Klara, 2017.). Its lower levels of carbohydrates increase
some stress hormones (cortisol) and decrease anabolic hormones like testosterone,
and lower anabolism in athletes due to the lowered protein content could be an
issue (Miller, 2017.). Fat loading has also been found to be inferior to
carbohydrate loading for athletic endeavors as a mode of event preparation
(Zajac, 2014.).
The
following chart outlines the various carb restricted eating plans and the
benefits and drawbacks of each, it also outlines the macronutrient break down
and the effect of some of the lab values.
Conclusion
While
the metaphor “many roads lead to Rome” applies here, the mode of eating program
you utilize does not seem to have a major bearing on your FFM, cholesterol
profile (excluding Ketogenic) or satiety, so long as you adhere to the major
guidelines outlined by these various authors. These programs are here as tools,
allowing the individual to maintain a healthy frame, feel satiated and ensure
that their lab work will be within normal limits. In making our meal selections, we are
deciding what effect we are having on our bodies and lives
Comparison of the various
low carbohydrate plans (Keto and Paleo, 2018).
Ketogenic
|
DeFlame
|
Enter the Zone
|
Paleo
|
|
Macronutrient breakdown
|
Carbs: 5-10%
Fat: 60-80
Protein: 20-30
|
Can fluctuate between a
Keto and Paleo
|
Carbs: 40%
Fat: 30%
Protein: 30%
|
Carbs: 10-15%
Fat: 55-75%
Protein: 15-30%
|
Keys
|
Avoid Carbohydrates;
Burn fats in lieu of carbs
|
Avoid processed or
refined sugars, grains and trans fat
|
Avoid high glycemic
index foods, balance macro’s
|
Avoid post agricultural
period products (dairy, refined sugars, grains)
|
Pro’s
|
increased FFM, improved
satiety
|
increased FFM, improved
satiety
|
Increased FFM, improved
satiety
|
Increased FFM,
Improved satiety
|
Cons
|
Decreased athletic
performance
|
none
|
none
|
No limitations due to
no guidelines, expense
|
Lab value impact
|
Lower insulin levels,
Lower testosterone, increased inflammation, higher lipoproteins
|
Lower insulin levels,
decreased inflammation, lower cholesterol/heart disease
|
Lower insulin levels,
lower inflammation, lower cholesterol/heart disease
|
Lower insulin levels,
lower inflammation, lower cholesterol/heart disease
|
.
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