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1. Carbohydrates and fats
What role do carbohydrates and fats play in our bodies?
Recently, low-carb, high-fat diets that consume a lot of fat while eating fewer carbohydrates have been gaining traction.
Carbohydrates are best known for their presence in grains such as rice, bread, and noodles, but fruits and vegetables are also found in them. When carbohydrates are broken down in the intestines, they become sugars like glucose. This is the collection of sugars. If it tastes sweet or has a lot of sugar, you can understand that it contains a lot of carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are considered to be the most important ingredient because they are used as an energy source by the body immediately after consumption.
Unlike carbohydrates, fat is not used as an energy source right away, but it is a very dense source of energy. Carbohydrates have about 4 calories of energy per gram, while fats can produce 9 calories. Because it is twice as much energy as carbohydrates, the body stores fat and uses it when needed.
2. How the low-carb diet works
How can I lose weight on a low-carb diet?
So, how can you lose weight on a low-carb diet? In normal metabolism, carbohydrates are broken down into glucose and fats into free fatty acids. When glucose enters the beta cells* of the pancreas, it produces a hormone called insulin. Many of you may know insulin as a hormone that lowers blood sugar, but insulin is responsible for storing glucose in the liver and muscles in the form of glucose. The sugars in the blood are stored and it looks like the blood sugar is dropping.
*Beta cells: Cells that make insulin.
*Beta cells: Cells that make insulin.
It's important to note that insulin is a hormone that stores fat as well as sugar. When you eat less carbohydrates, glucose decreases, which reduces the stimulation of beta cells and insulin secretion, making it harder for the fat you eat to accumulate in your body. In other words, even if you eat a lot of fat, you won't gain weight easily.
The key to a low-carb diet is, after all, low-carb. Instead, they try to make up for the lack of energy by eating fewer carbohydrates through fat.
3. Weight loss effects of low-carb diets
How much weight can you lose on a low-carb diet?
There are different diets depending on the ratio of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. Compared to other diets, we have collected and analyzed the results of studies to see how effective low-carb diets are for weight loss. As a result, the most popular low-fat diet averaged around 3 kg, while the Atkins diet, one of the low-fat diets, showed the most noticeable weight loss graph compared to other dieting methods.
In fact, there are studies that have combined low-fat diets with low-carb diets. In the study, after about 6 months of experimentation, it was analyzed that the low-fat diet succeeded in losing more than 2 kilograms and the low-carbohydrate diet succeeded in losing more than 6 kilograms. Low-carb diets were three to four times more effective at weight loss than low-fat diets.
4. How low-carb diets affect cholesterol
Can a low-carb diet help improve cholesterol?
Cholesterol is divided into HDL cholesterol*, which prevents atherosclerosis*, and LDL cholesterol**, which causes atherosclerosis, and a low-carbohydrate diet can also have a positive effect on increasing HDL cholesterol. However, it is important to note that high-fat diets combined with low-carb diets have the potential to naturally raise LDL cholesterol.
*HDL cholesterol: Cholesterol that cleans blood vessels by transporting the remaining cholesterol in the blood to the liver.
**LDL cholesterol: Cholesterol that transports cholesterol made in the liver to tissues and cells in the body.\
*HDL cholesterol: Cholesterol that cleans blood vessels by transporting the remaining cholesterol in the blood to the liver.
**LDL cholesterol: Cholesterol that transports cholesterol made in the liver to tissues and cells in the body.\
5. Precautions for a low-carb diet
What do I need to know before going on a low-carb diet?
Mortality studies have shown that people who follow a low-carb diet have a nearly 30% higher mortality rate. Among them, the mortality rate from cardiovascular disease was about 10% higher. In another study, there was no significant difference in overall mortality for women, while the overall mortality rate was about 19~20% higher for men and about 15% higher for cardiovascular disease.
An analysis of the reasons for these differences revealed an interesting fact. Those who ate animal fats and animal proteins had a 23% increase in mortality when they ate a low-carbohydrate diet, while those who ate vegetable fats and plant-based proteins had a reduced mortality rate. In short, when you're on a low-carb diet, it's better to choose plant-based foods when it comes to fat and protein.
So, let's summarize 3 precautions that you should know before going on a low-carb diet.
First, for those who want to follow a low-carbohydrate diet, it is recommended to reduce carbohydrates by 10~20% from their usual intake rather than drastically reducing them. Here's a tip: Snacks are the most carbohydrate-rich food source. If you eat a lot of snacks, you can expect a low-carb diet just by cutting them down.
Second, it is better to eat fish or vegetable fats instead of meat. Similarly, for protein, vegetable proteins such as soybeans, tofu, and olive oil are recommended.
Second, it is better to eat fish or vegetable fats instead of meat. Similarly, for protein, vegetable proteins such as soybeans, tofu, and olive oil are recommended.
Third, people with hyperlipidemia or cardiovascular disease should not try a low-carbohydrate diet. Extreme low-carb, high-fat diets are also dangerous to your health.
6. Diet FAQs: FAQs
I'm curious about diet!
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Q. Can a low-carbohydrate diet cause skin health problems?
One of the side effects of a low-carb diet is skin problems. Problems such as chitolash* and pimples may occur.
*Ketolash: A skin rash caused by a decrease in carbohydrate intake. |
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Q. Can a low-carb diet cause headaches?
If your carbohydrate intake is reduced, you are more likely to have a headache. Sugars broken down from carbohydrates are the most important source of energy used by our brains. Ketoic acids broken down from fat are also used as an energy source, but their energy efficiency is inferior to that of sugars, and in some cases, excessive accumulation of ketoic acids can cause headaches.
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Q. Can a low-carb diet cause insomnia?
Insomnia is also a common side effect of low-carb diets. As with headaches, it is assumed that the depletion of energy in the brain due to sugar can be an important cause, and it is also a problem caused by the accumulation of ketoic acids.
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Q. Can I eat carbohydrates from fruit when on a low-carb diet?
Fruits contain a lot of vitamins and minerals that are good for the body, so it is recommended to consume them in moderation. However, basically, fruits with a strong sweetness are high in sugar, so they are not a good food for a low-carb diet. However, depending on the type, fruits that contain a lot of fiber may not be bad because the sugar rises slowly.
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Q. What is metabolic syndrome?
The accumulation of visceral fat produces a number of substances in the body that increase insulin resistance. Increased insulin resistance leads to adult diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure, as well as problems such as elevated triglyceride levels and low cholesterol, which is a combination of these factors and is called metabolic syndrome.
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Q. How should I lose visceral fat?
There is no way to lose visceral fat alone. However, if you lose total fat through regular diet and exercise, visceral fat will be lost first among subcutaneous fat and visceral fat. Therefore, women who have more subcutaneous fat than visceral fat often find it difficult to lose weight.
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Q. Can I eat protein instead of fat when dieting?
Protein intake helps increase basal metabolism and muscle mass, but too much protein can be the kidneys.
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Q. Can I take protein bars as a meal replacement?
Not bad if the purpose is to increase your protein intake. However, rather than thinking about temporary weight loss, it would be better to consider whether you can maintain your diet in the long term.
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Q. Is losing a lot of fat harmful to the human body?
Excessive fat loss can lead to dangerous situations. There are places in our body where fat is essential. For example, the cell membrane that surrounds cells is made up of fatty components called phospholipids. If you lose too much fat, many metabolic activities through it can be affected.
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Q. Can I gain weight if I have a diet that is based on the recommended calories?
In the past, there was a perception that people gained weight due to the imbalance between energy supply and energy expenditure, so calorie counting was very important when dieting. But these days, they say Calorie is just calorie.
You don't have to get too hung up on calories when you're dieting. The low-carb diet is one of the kinds of diets that overcomes the problem of calorie diets.
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Q. Is it okay to eat sugar as long as you stick to the right amount when dieting?
The concept of adequate dosage can vary from person to person. For example, depending on whether you are obese or diabetic, the amount of sugar you can accept varies.
First of all, generally speaking, sugar is not a nutritionally recommended food. This is because sugar raises blood sugar levels at a rapid rate. This can lead to metabolic instability in the body. If possible, reduce your sugar intake.
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Q. How can I prevent the yo-yo phenomenon?
Why does the yo-yo phenomenon* occur? When you lose weight, you naturally lose muscle as well as fat. And when you lose muscle, your basal metabolic rate decreases. Basal metabolism accounts for about 60~70% of energy expenditure, so even if you eat a little after that, you will gain weight quickly. That's how the yo-yo phenomenon happens.
*Yo-yo phenomenon: A phenomenon in which the weight lost returns to its original weight after a while. Therefore, in order to prevent the yo-yo effect, it is recommended to lose weight slowly, as well as preserve muscle mass through adequate protein intake and exercise.
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Q. Which is more effective for weight loss, diet or exercise?
What is more effective for weight loss during diet and exercise is dietary control. When you start to gain muscle mass through exercise, it may seem like you're gaining weight.
However, diet and exercise are both important for dieting. If you go on a diet without exercise, you will lose fat, but you will lose muscle. When that happens, the basal metabolism, which accounts for 60~70% of the total energy expenditure, decreases, so you will gain weight quickly. On the other hand, if you want to lose weight through exercise without dietary adjustment, you need to do high-intensity exercise for about 3~4 hours a day. However, even with this increased amount of exercise, it is difficult to preserve muscle mass without a protein supply.
Q. Do you burn calories when you think?
It's true that your brain consumes a lot of energy when you think, but it's not a big enough energy drain to lead to weight loss. Instead, stress can cause you to lose weight, and this is not so much due to the brain using a lot of energy as it is to the hormonal imbalance in the body.
Q. If I eat a lot, will I gain weight quickly?
Since our body has homeostasis to try to keep it in the same condition, the weight gained from a temporary binge for a day or two will be restored within a few days. Of course, if you stick to your diet in the long term, you'll still gain weight.
Since our body has homeostasis to try to keep it in the same condition, the weight gained from a temporary binge for a day or two will be restored within a few days. Of course, if you stick to your diet in the long term, you'll still gain weight.
Q. Can I lose weight quickly?
There is no medical basis for saying that you will lose weight quickly. It's very easy to gain weight, but you won't lose it easily.
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