NYC Blog

Low-carb diets have been popular for decades—especially in terms of weight loss.

There are various types of low-carb diets, but all of them include reducing carb consumption to 20–150 grammes a day.

The primary objective of a diet is to push your body to use more fat for food instead of using carbohydrates as the key source of nutrition.

How this works

Low-carb diets prioritise limitless levels of protein and fat while severely restricting the carbohydrate consumption.

If the intake of carbohydrate is very low, fatty acids are transferred through your blood and delivered to the liver, where some of them transform into ketones.

Weight loss

Various studies have demonstrated that low-carb diets are extremely helpful for weight loss, especially in overweight and obese individuals.

They appear to be very effective in reducing the harmful belly fat that can be trapped around the organs.

People on extremely low-carb diets usually have a condition called ketosis. Many researchers note that ketogenic diets result in more than double the weight loss of a low-fat, calorie-restricted diet.

Additional benefits

Low-carb diets aim to decrease your appetite and make you feel less hungry, leading to an automatic reduction in calorie intake.

In comparison, low-carb diets can benefit many of the main disease risk factors, such as blood triglycerides, cholesterol levels, blood sugar levels, insulin levels, and blood pressure.

The downside to this: Low-carb diets don't suit everybody. Some feel amazing about them, and others feel horrible.

Some people may experience a rise in "bad" LDL cholesterol.

In very rare cases, very low-carb diets can cause a severe disorder called non-diabetic ketoacidosis. This disease tends to be more common in lactating women and can be fatal if left untreated.

However, low-carb diets are healthy for most individuals.

SUMMARY

Low-carb diets significantly restrict carbohydrate consumption and force the body to use fat for food. They help to lose weight and are related to several other health benefits.