21 Keto Diet Benefits (Scientifically Proven)

Table of Contents

The keto diet benefits are numerous and profound. We’ll look at 21 in this in-depth guide…

When I really looked at what it could do for all manner of diseases that I’d seen my coaching clients struggling with for years, then I had to take it seriously…

And when I understood the huge positive impact that getting into healthy nutritional ketosis does for our body and brain, I decided to give it a go myself.

Even though I had no particular health struggles (the alkaline diet had been working well for me for almost a decade), I just knew from the research I’d immersed myself in that keto is a goldmine of solid benefits and that I’d experience some of them too.

I really loved watching Naomi Whittel and Montel Williams’ The Real Skinny on Fat documentary series with a whole host of keto doctors and experts. It really confirmed all the other research I had been reading and it was so inspiring to see story after story of great keto results, weight loss and disease reversals.

Here’s Montel Williams on the Dr Oz show talking about the keto diet benefits and how he used keto to reverse the effects of the stroke he had. (I’m not a huge fan of Dr Oz or mainstream TV diet info, but this is pretty good…)

I’ve now been following the keto diet myself for several years – I plan periods of prolonged ketosis, as per my Keto Life plan – and I always love the way it makes me feel and the energy, time and great digestion it gives me.

I didn’t realise how below-par I felt before until I experienced how good I felt in ketosis…

On a high carb low fat vegan diet I had energy that was up and down, a lack of mental focus, energy and drive and began to have frequent colds and minor illnesses, as well as a lot of gas a bloating.

On keto, all that got better…within 2 weeks.

Now, before we look at all the solid benefits of the ketogenic diet, I will give two disclaimers:

#1 – Whilst I’m a Master Certified Keto Diet Coach and Nutritionist, I’m not a medical doctor. What I’m sharing is my and my clients’ results and opinions, coupled with the results and science from board certified medical doctors and researchers who have done extensive studies on keto. I am acting as a friend and a signpost to the hard research and clinical practice done by the professionals.

#2 – The keto flu. It’s not uncommon for many people (I did, you may) to experience initial keto diet negatives in the form of ‘keto flu’ symptoms, such as headaches, sleeplessness and muscle cramps. These can quickly pass as we get deeper into ketosis and we can mitigate these symptoms by following a well-balanced keto diet plan… But just sayin’!

So let’s dive into the great keto diet benefits for your health and life…

The Clinically-Proven Keto Diet Benefits

“Many chronic symptoms and health conditions—such as fatigue, sleepiness, mood disorders, insomnia, gastroesophageal reflux disease, lipid disorders, high blood pressure, headaches (including migraines), gas, bloating, irritable bowel syndrome, joint inflammation, acne, and difficulty concentrating, to name a few—will improve on a ketogenic diet. Treating lifestyle conditions with lifestyle change such as this can make us a healthier and less drug-dependent country. – Jackie Eberstein (40-year low-carb nurse)”

― Eric Westman MD, ‘Keto Clarity: Your Definitive Guide to the Benefits of a Low-Carb, High-Fat Diet’

1. Much Better Digestion – Eases Leaky Gut, IBS, SIBO, GERD & Bloating

When I started keto, within just a few days, my stomach got flatter and my digestion seemed quite lovely and calm. I noticed that I didn’t have stomach rumblings and bloating and abdominal pain, which I had had on and off before – nothing major but enough to notice.

Grain-based foods and plant foods that contain lectins (protective chemicals found in the skins and seeds of veg, grains, nuts, seeds and fruits) can cause a lot of digestive upset, acid reflux and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

Research shows that a low carb keto diet can really help IBS, GERD and reflux¹ and address small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO).
Another research study² says: “Our findings suggest that a high intake of carbohydrate, glycaemic load, and glycaemic index increases the risk of symptomatic gall stone disease in men.

Keto doctor, Dr Eric Westman, in an interview is quoted as saying:

“By taking away the carbohydrate in the food, I can pretty much fix every gastrointestinal problem that affects people today…
“The bowel gas or flatulence is greatly reduced or almost entirely resolves when you take away carbohydrate from the diet. Gluten, which is found in carbohydrate containing foods is a well known cause of gastrointestinal problems including celiac disease or gluten intolerance. The signals that we get clinically are if someone has gastrointestinal disturbance you want to reduce or eliminate the carbohydrate, not the fat.”

In my years of work with people with many different digestive disorders such as SIBO, IBS, GERD, reflux and leaky gut and seeing the benefits of ketogenic diet approaches that include some fermented gut-healing foods, I tend to agree.

It’s kind of like this…

A well-formulated keto diet is to poor digestion as Jesus is to the storm in Mark 4:39…

“And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.”

keto-diet-benefits-digestion-sibo-gerd-reflux-ibs-leaky-gut

2. Reduced Inflammation Markers – Joint Pain, Skin Issues, Autoimmune Disease

Inflammation can cause a whole host of unwanted health issues and is the root of so many diseases, such as arthritis and joint pain, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, autoimmune disease, Colitis, Crohn’s, Psoriasis, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), Addison’s disease, Grave’s disease, Hashimoto’s, even asthma and obesity…to name a few.

A good marker of inflammation in the body is levels of C-reactive proteins (CRP) and white blood cell count (WBC). There have been various studies to show that a low carb keto diet reduces these inflammation markers ³, ⁴

In Dr Stephen Phinney’s Type 2 Diabetes study⁵, ‘patients experienced a CRP reduction of 39 percent, and white blood cells were reduced by 9 percent’.

Similar results were seen in a two-year study ⁶, which showed a 29 percent decrease in CRP following a low-carbohydrate diet.

A keto diet reduces inflammation because it stabilises blood sugar at healthy levels and reduces an insulin response and also because it tends to be much lower in inflammatory dietary lectins.

I’ve worked with several people who have cleared up Psoriasis, Eczema, joint pain and other inflammatory diseases with keto.

My 1-1 and Keto Life coaching client Hilary told me recently on a call of her keto diet benefits…

“As soon as I stopped keto the pain in my knees came back again. When I got back into ketosis, it stopped.” – Hilary Rose, UK

3. It Reduces Your Appetite & Sugar Cravings

It’s no secret that the keto diet is extremely effective in reducing cravings for unhealthy foods as well as your overall appetite.

Once you’re in healthy ketosis, It’s quite easy for many hours to pass and you realise you haven’t thought about food once and you’re not even hungry. Honestly!

I was skeptical about this too. I’m the biggest food lover out there but when I’m in keto, I’m not particularly fussed about eating.

This has several benefits…

When you’re not a slave to food cravings, addiction and impulsiveness, you make wiser and healthier food choices.

At this point, I have not eaten sugar for almost a whole year!

[Excluding the ‘lemon ricotta cake incident’ – sign up for my free Keto A-Z email series and I’ll tell you that story!]

This is the girl who used to think nothing of eating 3, 4, 5 chocolate bars in a day sometimes. Before discovering a low carb high fat diet and then trying keto, the thought of giving up sugar would have sent me into a nervous cold sweat.

Not anymore, sugar is out of my life and I feel much better for it!

[You can get my free 10-step Quit Sugar Plan here, and thank me later.]

The bottom line – the keto diet reduces hunger and your calorie intake⁷. This leads us onto the next benefit…

4. Rapid Weight Loss – It’s THE Anti-Obesity Diet

It never fails to surprise me when my clients let me know that they’ve shed 20, 30, 50lbs on the keto diet and on my Keto Life program.

And let’s face it, most of us would like to lose at least a few pounds of flab and feel a little more fabulous…

I have been coaching people with their diet and health for over 17 years at this point and I’ve prescribed plant based diets, strict alkaline diets, juice and smoothie detox diets, high carb low fat, paleo and in all my years of experience, NOTHING comes close to keto in getting the most outstanding and consistent weight loss results.

One of my clients Jenna, who thought she “hadn’t done very well with keto”, lost 35lbs in a few months.

Beth lost 20lbs in a couple of months – more than she’d lost with diets in the past decade.

Dean in one of my coaching groups lost just shy of 100lbs in less than 8 months.

And here’s the thing – people tend to KEEP THE WEIGHT OFF with keto and they love the way of eating.

Because it reduces hunger and appetite and gives your body a whole new fuel source, people don’t usually pile back on the pounds when they come out of ketosis. Plus, the foods on keto are decadent, delicious and very satisfying. Who doesn’t like steak with buttered vegetables?

Understanding and practicing healthy keto is a real paradigm shift for most people and a total upgrade in our way of thinking about food, fats, diet and health and these benefits can give you a great foundation for the rest of your life.

And it’s no wonder. When we follow a keto diet, we are training our bodies to become fat burners, rather than carb burdens and fat storers. Keto is an excellent diet to prevent and reverse obesity and get down to your ideal weight.⁸

5. Autophagy & Fasting-Mimicking Benefits

Autopha-what?!

Autophagy is your body’s way of ‘cleaning house’. It sweeps up damaged cells – restores and reuses them in many cases and gets rid of those that are beyond repair…

Autophagy literally means ’self-eating’, but unlike ‘apoptosis’ which is programmed cell death, autophagy can often spare cells from complete death by recycling and renewing them instead.

It plays a role in controlling inflammation and boosting our immunity, among other benefits.

A 2012 study⁹ found, in mice anyhow, that autophagy can prevent against various diseases such as cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, infections, autoimmune diseases, premature ageing and insulin resistance (which often leads to diabetes).

The number one way to spark autophagy is through prolonged or intermittent fasting. When you get into ketosis, two things happen:

First, you feel like eating less and it therefore tends to go hand in hand with intermittent fasting, where we eat only during a shorter window of time throughout the day.

I often follow an intermittent fast of 16:8 when I’m on my keto diet. I fast for 16 hours (between, say, 6pm and 10am the next day) and eat during only an 8 hour window (between 10am-6pm). It’s a wonderful way of eating and I can just feel it doing me good!

Second, nutritional ketosis actually mimics a fasting state, since there are no carbs for your body to feed on, it turns to fat for fuel – the same as what happens when we fast, we use our body fat for fuel.

It’s a great idea to increase autophagy in your body and the keto diet is one of the best ways to do it.

6. Stabilizes Your Blood Sugar – Can Reverse Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome

The benefits of keto for Type 2 Diabetes is very well documented indeed and I’ve seen great results with my clients who’ve joined my Keto Life program and in some cases reversed their diabetes altogether.

One thing to be mindful of if you’re diabetic though is that when you start a keto diet, you will need to monitor your blood sugar and insulin levels very closely and in many cases reduce medication, since keto very effectively normalises blood sugar and insulin levels.

Please do consult your doctor before and during your keto journey.

A 2007 study of 64 obese people with Type 2 Diabetes had these results:

“This study shows the beneficial effects of ketogenic diet in obese diabetic subjects following its long-term administration. Furthermore, it demonstrates that in addition to its therapeutic value, low carbohydrate diet is safe to use for a longer period of time in obese diabetic subjects.”¹⁰

There are plenty of other studies¹¹, ¹² that show similarly very positive results of a ketogenic diet for diabetic patients – a one year study showed that putting diabetics on a keto diet dramatically improved their blood sugar control.

Quite simply, the keto diet gets us off of the ‘blood sugar roller coaster’ and works to reverse diabetes and the metabolic syndrome that insulin resistance causes.

Here’s a gutsy and very clear Ted Talk by Dr Sarah Hallberg on how to reverse Type 2 diabetes with a low carb diet…and ignoring the erroneous dietary guidelines:

And what about Type 1 Diabetes? Keto works for that too (14,15,16).

In 2016, a small randomized, controlled trial (RCT) – considered the ‘gold standard’ for evidence – found that people with Type 1 Diabetes who limited carbs to 75-100g per day (low carb but not even ketogenic) for 12 weeks had significant reductions in HbA1c and blood glucose levels compared to those who practiced standard carb counting. Additionally, those who were overweight lost an average of 11 pounds).¹³

7. Better Sleep & Physical Energy

You might experience a bit of sleep disruption for the first week or so on keto as your body is wondering “where on earth are the carbs?!” But it’s well worth pushing through that short period to experience a long-term upgrade in your sleep…

Studies have shown that a state of ketosis improves sleep by decreasing the REM phase and increasing slow-wave sleep patterns. This is due to the metabolism of the fat content and your brain’s use of ketones on a very low carbohydrate diet.

This improvement in sleep will naturally have a positive impact on your energy levels throughout the day, but on top of that, using ketones for fuel provides a superior and more stable energy source anyhow, so the benefits really begin to stack up.

Using ketones for fuel provides protective effects for your cells’ mitochondria to reduce oxidative stress in the brain¹⁴ and free radicals in the blood. They also deliver much more oxygen to your cells all throughout your body and brain. Youu think this might affect your physical and mental energy for the better somewhat? You bet.

One of my clients John said that in his sixties, he now has more energy on keto than he did back in his forties.

8. Optimum Brain Function, Memory, Focus & Productivity

It’s a common myth that our brains can only run on glucose. Whilst on a ‘normal’ diet they do run on glucose all of the time, our brains actually prefer to run on ketones.

Ketones increase your cells’ mitochondrial (energy) function and protect your brain against damage from oxidative stress – caused by too many free radicals compared to antioxidants in the body.¹⁵

When in ketosis, our liver produces beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB), which Dr. David Perlmutter, Neurologist, keto advocate and author of the excellent book ‘Grain Brain’ says “is the most important fat for brain energy utilization.”

It does take a little bit of time in ketosis for your brain to convert over to using fat for fuel initially – because it is so comfortable using carbs and will stubbornly/protectively do all it can to convert energy from various sources into simple glucose.

But once your brain knows that burning fat is good and there’s a good supply of it available, from dietary fat and body fat, you’re off to the races!

You can think of ketones as high octane jet fuel for your brain.

My experience with keto is that after only a few days on the keto diet, my mental energy is consistently higher, my focus is much sharper, there’s no afternoon brain fog and my productivity goes up.

Once we step off the blood sugar rollercoaster, we have mental alertness that is unsurpassed. This benefit alone has made a HUGE difference in my life and can in yours too.

[QUICK STORY: Whilst in ketosis, I was able to create my whole Keto Life program in less than 3 weeks. I filmed ALL of the 80+ training and recipe videos in just 1 weekend it took me another 2 weeks to write the meal plans, recipe book, Keto Life Guidebook and all the cheatsheets. Plus I created the membership site and all the bits associated with it.

Looking back, I am stunned at my productivity during that time. Under normal circumstances of a regular diet, even a healthy one, it would have taken at least 4 months.]

Even the Navy Seals are turning to the keto diet as a ‘brain hack’ to give them that extra edge in mental sharpness.

Here’s another thing, most of our brain tissue is made up of fatty acids, so it makes sense that fats would be vital for both our overall brain health and also its important functions like learning, memory and cognitive functioning.

No diet will remove all the fat from your body because the brain is entirely fat. Without a brain, you might look good, but all you could do is run for public office.
– George Bernard Shaw
– George Bernard Shaw

9. Beats Depression & Anxiety

Many problems with mental health – including depression and anxiety are in large part caused by digestive and gut problems. Do you know we have a ‘gut-brain axis’?

The gut-brain axis is the biochemical signaling that takes place between the gastrointestinal tract (GI tract) and the central nervous system (CNS). It also factors in the role of the gut microbiome (its ‘good’ bacteria).

When our diet contains wheat and gluten, sugar, junk food, too many inflammatory plant lectins and is devoid of healthy fats, and nourishing animal products like bone bone broth and raw fermented traditional foods like sauerkraut, it compromises our gut flora and as a direct result, takes its toll on our mental health.¹⁶

On top of this, the use of antibiotics and drugs such as aspirin, paracetamol, ibuprofen, steroids, contraceptives etc really worsens this problem…

Who’s have thought that eating bread and talking a pill for a headache could lead to depression?!

Dr Natasha Campbell McBride pioneered the GAPS Diet (Gut and Psychology Syndrome) and show us the clear connection between gut and brain health and has had great results in her clinical practice with using a high fat diet (similar, but not the same as keto) for reversing depression, anxiety and even autism and schizophrenia.

A well formulated keto diet not only improves your gut micro biome by including gut healing foods and removing inflammatory ones but it also removes blood sugar fluctuations to produce a more stable and positive mood throughout the day.

The bottom line is that it’s hard to beat the protective brain benefits and positive mental effects of the keto diet and eating healthy and nourishing fats with very low levels of sugar.¹⁷

10. Can Do Wonders For Alzheimer’s, Dementia and Parkinson’s

Alzheimer’s disease is now being called ‘Type 3 Diabetes’¹⁸, as it’s been shown to be linked heavily with metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance in brain cells (AKA too many carbs!)

Alzheimer’s and dementia are very difficult and damaging diseases that not only cause physical and mental illness in the sufferer but also causes a lot of heartache in the family and in close relationships. I have experienced the travesty of Alzheimer’s and dementia and it’s very hard to live with, as anyone who knows will tell you.

Isn’t it good to know that we are not helpless to do anything in the case of serious physical and mental disease?! The keto diet can be a game changer in so many situations, as we’re seeing on this page.

Dr. Mary Newport is a leading voice in promoting ketosis for Alzheimer’s. In her book, Alzheimer’s Disease: What If There Was A Cure? – she tells us how she stopped her husband’s Alzheimer’s by feeding him plenty of coconut oil, MCT oil (medium chain triglycerides – derived from coconut oil, palm kernel oil and dairy products) and ketone supplements.

Dr. Newport also reported that she has received over 400 testimonials from others about the positive effects of coconut oil for Alzheimer’s. Anecdotal, but this is a strong case and adds to the clinical studies promoting the healthy fats needed for ketosis…

A 2019 study¹⁹ shows that:

“Patients diagnosed with mild Alzheimer’s Disease who are carriers of the ApoE4 gene variant can yield significant improvement in cognition and overall metabolic health through a clinically prescribed, nutritional ketogenic approach aimed at restoring metabolic flexibility to both peripheral tissues and the brain.”

Even in the early stages of dementia, research shows that the keto diet is very effective in reducing mild cognitive impairment and restoring memory.²⁰ Further, it’s been found to be effective for Parkinson’s too.

The Charlie Foundation gives more info and research on the benefits of keto for Alzheimer’s, dementia and also epilepsy…

11. Used Clinically For 100 Years in Epilepsy and Seizure Control

The beginning of the keto diet’s use in a therapeutic and clinical setting began over 100 years ago in the management of epilepsy, when it was discovered that this very low carb, high fat diet minimised and even stopped seizures altogether.

The Charlie Foundation is a great hub for epilepsy info and resources, as is Matthew’s Friends.

There’s some solid studies coming out of Johns Hopkins University²¹,²² on keto for epilepsy and also this study from the American Academy off Paediatrics²³ is very encouraging:

“Of the original 150 epileptic patient cohort, 20 (13%) were seizure-free and an additional 21 (14%) had a 90% to 99% decrease in their seizures. Twenty-nine were free of medications, and 28 were on only 1 medication; 15 remained on the diet. There were no known cardiac complications.

Conclusion: Three to 6 years after initiation, the ketogenic diet had proven to be effective in the control of difficult-to-control seizures in children. The diet often allows decrease or discontinuation of medication. It is more effective than many of the newer anticonvulsants and is well-tolerated when it is effective.”

If you want more info, here’s a great video by Dr Elizabeth Thiele on the positive effects of the keto diet for epilepsy and seizure control.

Oh and keto is good for migraines too.²⁴

12. Can Ease Autism Symptoms

Autism is growing at an alarming rate – it’s the fastest growing developmental disability and affects so many people.

The GAPS diet to build up a healthy microbiome is well-known to have good effects for autism but also a lower carbohydrate keto diet has shown promise too.

In a pilot study of 18 autistic children, using an high MCT oil keto diet, 10 of the 18 children showed moderate or significant behavioral improvement after a 6 month trial of providing keto diet cycles.²⁵,²⁶
Seizures and autism go hand in hand in a lot of cases. Both epilepsy and autism are neurological disorders based in metabolic dysfunction and as such, both can be treated with a ketogenic diet.²⁷

The Bottom Line on Keto Diet Brain Health and Neurological Conditions

The different energy metabolism that ketosis and ketones for fuel provides compared with glucose for fuel seems to be the key…

“There is an emerging literature supporting the broad use of the ketogenic diet against a variety of neurological conditions. These preliminary studies are largely based on the fundamental idea that metabolic shifts may lead to neuroprotective actions (Gasior et al., 2006; Maalouf et al., 2009). How can a simple dietary change lead to improvement in disorders with such a huge span of pathophysiological mechanisms? Alterations in energy metabolism appear to be a common theme.”²⁸

13. Keto For Cancer Reversal

Back in 1927, leading biochemist Dr Otto Warburg discovered that cancer tumor cells favor the use of glycolysis (burning carbohydrates for fuel) to provide energy and biomolecules, regardless of the availability of oxygen. This is known as the ‘Warburg Effect’ and states clearly that cancer cells prefer glucose (blood sugar) as a fuel.

We know that the keto diet REMOVES glucose as fuel and replaces it with ketones. Do you think this might have a positive effect? Let’s see…

Recent research on cancer cell metabolism and metabolic treatments has brought Dr. Warburg’s hypothesis back into focus – most notably by leading researchers and Dr Thomas Seyfried and Dr Dominic D’agostino.

They note in their 2013 research study:

“Cancer cells express an abnormal metabolism characterized by increased glucose consumption owing to genetic mutations and mitochondrial dysfunction. Previous studies indicate that, unlike healthy tissues, cancer cells are unable to effectively use ketone bodies for energy. Furthermore, ketones inhibit the proliferation and viability of cultured tumor cells.”²⁹

In essence, the research shows that ketone bodies can provide energy for your body without feeding the tumours.³⁰,³¹

“Cells that exhibit the most active metabolic rates (i.e. cancer cells) are most sensitive to the lack of metabolic energy to fuel their activity a well-recognized biochemical phenomenon known as the Warburg effect.

Theoretically, depriving rapidly dividing, highly metabolic cancer cells of their usual fuel supply, e.g. glucose (by use of the Ketogenic Diet or 2DG [an anti-metabolite]), could be clinically therapeutic.³² Despite this well documented cellular observation, the KD has only recently been considered as a clinical treatment in the oncology field.”³³

Another 2012 study from Thomas Seyfried has the following findings in brain cancer cases :

As long as brain tumor cells have access to glucose and glutamine, the disease will progress. The current standard of care provides brain tumors with access to glucose and glutamine. The high fat low carbohydrate ketogenic diet (KD) will target glucose availability and possibly that of glutamine when administered in carefully restricted amounts to reduce total caloric intake and circulating levels of glucose. The restricted KD (RKD) targets major signaling pathways associated with glucose and glutamine metabolism including the IGF-1/PI3K/Akt/Hif pathway. The RKD is anti-angiogenic, anti-invasive, anti-inflammatory, and pro-apoptotic when evaluated in mice with malignant brain cancer.

Therapeutic efficacy of the RKD was seen against malignant gliomas in human case reports. Hence, the RKD can be an effective non-toxic therapeutic option to the current standard of care for inhibiting the growth and invasive properties of malignant brain cancer.”³⁴

You can read a great overview article of Thomas Seyfried’s book ‘Cancer as a Metabolic Disease’ and the work of Dr Eugene Fine also backs up his findings.³⁵

keto-for-cancer-mitochondrial-health-metabolic-flexibility

There are many anecdotal reports of people with various types of cancer who can vouch for the keto diets effectiveness in battling this horrible disease. I have met and worked with several.

You can read about lots of people around the world today who are effectively using the keto diet to address their cancer. I really like Dr Josh Axe’s book which outlines how his mom healed with the keto diet.

In conclusion, the main idea behind the use of the keto diet as a cancer treatment is to starve the cancerous cells of the glucose that they need to survive and thrive and instead provide support for the mitochondrial respiration of healthy cells – which can thrive happily on ketones for fuel.

It goes with out saying that the keto diet is also non-toxic to the rest of the body, unlike conventional cancer treatments. That’s not to say we should throw conventional treatments out altogether or without consultation with your doctor but ketosis commands our attention as a viable other option or supplementation.³⁶

Ellen Davis’ book Fight Cancer With A Ketogenic Diet is a good resource for more information on keto for cancer.

14. Protects Against Heart Disease and Improves Cholesterol Profile

Conventional medical ‘wisdom’ will tell you that heart disease is caused by too much fat in our diet – especially saturated fat in the form of red meat, butter and eggs.

We are told to ‘follow a heart healthy diet’…

One medical website says this: “Try to limit saturated fats, foods high in sodium, and added sugars. Eat plenty of fresh fruit, vegetables, and whole grains.”

It holds up the DASH diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) as the gold standard for heart health – with lots of ‘healthy wholegrains’, low fat dairy, lean meat (“cut all that fat off of your sirloin please, sir”) and rancid, toxic vegetable oils and margarines instead of coconut oil and butter.

Yep.

Despite all the evidence we’ve seen that tells us that saturated fat is GOOD and that PUFA industrial seed ‘vegetable’ oils are bad. And all the benefits of a low carb high fat ketogenic diet..

The DASH diet actually recommends: Eat no more than 2-3 servings of fat each day, such as: 1 teaspoon soft margarine, 1 tablespoon mayonnaise or 2 tablespoons salad dressing.

The problem with these? They ALL contain vegetable oils – the big contributor to heart disease and other diseases listed in this article.

Naturally, we are to couple our DASH diet with regular exercise, limiting alcohol, managing stress and weight and being a non-smoker.

But of course, if all that doesn’t work, we’ll need to DASH to our doctors to be prescribed a statin drug like Lipator, Lescol or Lipostat…that we’ll probably have to be on for the rest of our life and won’t cure the problem, only manage it.

A nice little earner for the pharma companies don’t you think?
So where has this conventional (non) ‘wisdom’ come from?
We have Ancel Keys to thank and his just slightly rigged ‘7 Countries Study’ resulting in his lipid heart hypothesis which states that saturated fat in our diet raises cholesterol and that this leads to heart disease – whipped up in the 1950s and shaping our dicey nutritional guidelines ever since.

Watch this 2 minute video that explains, courtesy of the ‘Fat Head’ movie…

In some cases saturated fat does increase our cholesterol levels and in some cases not. Just like a high carb diet can also raise cholesterol and in some cases not. But here’s the kicker…

Cholesterol levels in the blood and saturated fat in the diet have no negative effect on heart disease. This has been shown to be true over many studies.³⁷,³⁸

And despite spending millions of dollars on research in the US, there is no evidence to link saturated fat, cholesterol levels and heart disease.

Professor Tim Noakes, who I interviewed on the Eternal Health Podcast, has been a huge pioneer in getting the information out that cholesterol is a faulty indicator of heart disease and is used to sell more drugs. I have my own story and experience of this when I was medical research manager for our health service here in the UK…

[Sign up to my newsletter and ‘Keto A-Z’ email series if you want to hear my story of working in mainstream medical research and what I saw.]

So don’t be afraid of cholesterol.

In fact, cholesterol is actually ESSENTIAL to our good health, especially the HDL type: Our bodies make 2000-3000mg of cholesterol per day. It acts as a band aid and healing agent to protect arteries that are corroded or inflamed.

On top of that, cholesterol makes up a large proportion of our brain and most of our hormones too and it’s needed to make vitamin D and absorb calcium. The bottom line – we need cholesterol to survive and thrive.

Did you know that? I didn’t either until a few years ago (hence my foray into high carb, low fat veganism for six years).
So what is the problem that leads to heart disease then? Inflammation.³⁹,⁴⁰,⁴¹

Cholesterol is sent to heal the inflammation – the good guys that show up to help. As Tim Noakes puts it, cholesterol is kind of like an ambulance at the scene of an accident – they’re there but they didn’t CAUSE the accident…Correlation does not equal causation.

keto-diet-and-cholersterol-saturated-fats

And what causes inflammation?

Sugar, high fructose corn syrup, refined carbs, grains, rancid veg oils and trans fats, GMOs, artificial chemicals. Also, adrenal problems…

But NOT saturated fat or a ketogenic diet.

According to Dr ken Berry, who’s helpfully collated the results of several research studies, when it comes to your cardiovascular health, stop worrying about cholesterol and start looking at these other things. All of these markers need to be at normal levels:

C-reactive protein (CRP) – a protein found in blood plasma that increases in response to inflammation⁴²
Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR)
C-peptites
Serum Ferritin
Fasting triglycerides ⁴³,⁴⁴
HbA1c ( a 3-month blood sugar average)
Waist to height ratio below 0.5

You don’t need to know what all of these things do, but if you’re concerned about your cardiovascular health, these are the things you should be asking your doctor to test for, or getting your own blood tests done.

Dr Jay Wortman observes that there is a continuum of health problems linked together – 4 progressive stages:

Overweight and obesity, leading to…
Metabolic syndrome, leading to…
Type 2 diabetes, leading to…
Cardiovascular disease and stroke.

We know that the keto diet is effective in tackling obesity, metabolic syndrome and Type 2 diabetes – all inflammatory metabolic issues. So it’s natural that we might assume that a low carb high fat ketogenic diet – rather than causing heart disease – could actually help our cardiovascular health…

And that’s exactly what the research shows – that keto is very good for your heart – it improves the metabolic markers for heart disease risk.⁴⁵,⁴⁶,⁴⁷

Dr Sarah Hallberg states that for most people on keto, triglycerides dramatically decrease, HDL (‘good’ cholesterol) goes up significantly and LDL stays the same or lowers. There can be a temporary rise in LDL for people who are losing weight fast, this is only temporary.

Also, the higher your triglycerides, the greater the number of small dense LDL particles (a bad thing). Conversely, the lower your triglycerides, the higher the number of large, fluffy LDL particles.⁴⁸

If we had to label any kind of cholesterol ‘bad’, it’s really only the small dense LDL particles, since they are more susceptible to being damaged by either oxidation or glycation – and keto reduces these and increases HDL.

While it may seem counterintuitive that eating a higher percentage of fat in your diet actually lowers triglyceride levels and improves your profile of HDL-LDL cholesertol, it turns out that the consumption of excess carbs (especially fructose) is the key driver of increasing triglycerides. ⁴⁹,⁵⁰

So I don’t know about you but I’m certainly cutting right back on the carbs and eating those egg yolks, fatty cuts of red meat and grass fed butter in abundance…and knowing that they’re doing my heart good. Further, for my Keto Life clients who’ve had blood work done before and after going on my keto diet plan, the results speak for themselves in showing improvements in key markers for cardiovascular health.

15. Better Fertility & Hormonal Health & May Help PCOS

Infertility and miscarriage are heart-breaking, nerve-wracking things for couples to go through and IVF treatment and the like are hugely expensive, with no guarantee of pregnancy. Wouldn’t it be nice if simple and inexpensive dietary changes could be a solution for growing a new little bundle of joy?

A leading fertility clinic in New York with many thousands of pregnancy success stories recommends a ketogenic diet for fertility, stating: “Due to its beneficial effects on hormones, blood sugar, and body composition, the ketogenic diet can be an extremely useful tool in boosting overall health and fertility if you’re trying to conceive. may just be the cheap, holistic fertility treatment you’re looking for.

The most significant effect of adopting a High-Fat Food plan is a reduction in inflammation that otherwise causes cellular stress that leads to a cascade of structural, functional, and hormonal abnormalities. This damage affects our reproductive organs and ultimately our sperm cells, egg cells, and leads to miscarriage.”

One of the most common causes of infertility among women is PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome).

PCOS affects around 1 in 10 women of childbearing age and most experts agree that there are two main underlying causes: High Levels of Androgens (‘male Hormones’) and high levels of insulin.

Obesity is another common cause of infertility and PCOS in women. Research shows that women who are overweight or obese tend to struggle with menstruation and ovulation, conception rates, miscarriages and other pregnancy complications.

In a pilot study, a group of obese patients with PCOS were put in a keto diet and it resulted in significant weight loss, improvements in free testosterone percentages (a good thing) and fasting insulin (also good) over a 24 week period.⁵¹

In another study the conclusion states: “This report highlights the ketogenic diet as a potential treatment option in the PCOS patient population, which may potentially assist with restoring normal menstrual cycles, ovulation, and thus improving fertility. In some instances, the ketogenic diet approach may even negate the need for more expensive (and potentially more harmful) forms of fertility treatments.“⁵²

Since PCOS and other infertility is related to hormone and metabolic imbalance it makes sense that a keto diet would be a helpful, since it regulates both of these things.

And for men, keto diets rich in Omega 3 fatty acids have been shown to improve sperm health.⁵³

16. Better Athletic Performance

The research and experience of Drs Jeff Volek, Stephen Phinney and Tim Noakes is interesting on this subject.

In their book, The Art and Science of Low Carb Performance, Volek and Phinney show that once you become keto and fat adapted after several weeks or months in ketosis, you have the potential to increase your athletic performance and endurance.

When you’re able to happily burn fat for fuel, you have a pretty much unlimited store of fuel in the form of your body fat.

Even the leanest people have around 30,000 calories of fat that they can burn…That will allow you to run about 10 marathons! (Most of us normal folk could probably fuel 30 marathons.)

With the exception of super fast elite endurance athletes and people wanting anaerobic power, such as sprinters, you’ll likely find that your sports performance increases once you’ve been in ketosis for over a month.

In my experience, I found I lost stamina with my running during the first few weeks that I ever did keto. However, now I am more fat adapted, I find it much easier to push past the initial dip in power and reach a sweet spot of great endurance. This correlates with the clinical science⁵⁴

I find I can enjoy fasted runs, whereas I never would have as a high carb vegan.

17. Beautifully Smooth and Youthful Skin – Can Ease Eczema, Psoriasis and Acne

Look at anyone who’s done keto for any significant length of time and you’ll notice something immediately…they have beautiful skin. Smooth, flawless, youthful, supple, well hydrated.

I had pretty good skin before but since I’ve been following a keto diet, my skin has really improved. I’m 40 at the time of writing this and people regularly think I’m in my mid twenties.

If you’re suffering with any severe skin issues like eczema, psoriasis or acne, the keto diet can work wonders: The fact that it helps to reduce inflammation and eliminates many inflammatory foods, such as grains and sugar, can explain why it may help to improve the health, youthfulness and look of your skin significantly.

[As an aside, when I was vegan I noticed that all my vegan friends and people I’d speak to at vegan events had loose, dull skin and often had a lot of skin issues and inflammation. Look at any long term vegan and they don’t look great, in my view. I won’t name names but some of the top vegan YouTubers who I used to hang out with in Thailand and go cycling up mountains with are lean and fit but have poor skin and do not have the calm and stable energy that keto-ers have. In fact, as you probably know, many vegans are pretty angry and aggressive. So much for peace, love and light, but I digress…]

18. Eye Health and Reduces Risk of Glaucoma & Cataracts

It’s no secret that high blood sugar, insulin resistance and diabetes increases your risk of poor eye health – in particular glaucoma, cataracts and diabetic retinopathy.

Over time, metabolic stress from having too much sugar in your blood can damage your retina.

Glaucoma is a progressive disease, most prevalent in diabetics, where the cells which transmit visual info to your brain get damaged. This can result in vision loss and in extreme cases, even blindness.

Cataracts are clouding of the eye’s natural lens and people with diabetes are at a greater risk.

The good news for eye health is that when we get our blood sugar in check with the keto diet, we can greatly reduce our risk of these serious eye problems and protect our full vision.
A study on mice revealed that on a ketogenic diet for two months, retinal cells and connections to the brain were protected from degeneration. It concluded: “the KD may be neuroprotective in certain diseases of the eye such as glaucoma, mitochondrial diseases of the optic nerve, or retinal ischaemic diseases (diabetic retinopathy and retinopathy of prematurity).”⁵⁵ It will be interesting to see the results of more studies on this.

There are plenty of anecdotal studies on the positive effects of the keto diet on eye health. One of my Keto Life clients Paul was able to reverse his increasing vision degeneration, which was thrilling to hear!

19. Better Liver Health & Decreased Fatty Liver Disease

Fatty liver disease is diagnosed then fat makes up at least 10% of the liver, which is unhealthy. It’s kind of like having an obese liver. It affects around 25% of our populations but around 60% of people with T2 diabetes.⁵⁶

There are two main types of fatty liver disease: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and alcoholic fatty liver disease. The cause of the latter is obvious but the cause of non-alcoholic FLD is less so and often misunderstood…

Many people think and are taught that FLD, just like whole body obesity, occurs because of too much saturated fats in the diet. Yep, saturated fat is demonised once again.

In actual fact, it’s poor gut health a LACK of healthy saturated fats and TOO MANY carbs that are the culprit – more specifically sugar and even more specifically – FRUCTOSE.

Fructose is the sugar found in fruit (but in fruit it’s not a problem as the fibre acts as a guard against the fructose bombarding the liver). It’s also found in high fructose corn syrup and this is a serious problem as it’s extremely hard on your liver and a major driver of fat storage.

Since FLD is so prevalent in people with T2 diabetes and also people who consume a lot of alcohol (generally very high carb), it gives us a clue that FLD is closely related to insulin resistance and, like so many diseases, a metabolic problem, made worse with the consumption of artery-clogging vegetable oils.

This is confirmed by the scientific studies, such as one from Cambridge University⁵⁷ which shows that reducing carbs and increasing saturated fat helps the liver shed excess fat in as little as three days.⁵⁸,⁵⁹

The keto diet, since it’s so low carb and high in healthy saturated fats, is therefore a great option for FLD..

One study found that six months of a ketogenic diet led to significant weight loss and improvement of fatty liver disease in obese patients.⁶⁰ At the end of six months, patients lost an average of 28 pounds and significantly reversed their liver inflammation and damage.

Another study showed that patients with NAFLD saw a 42% decrease in liver fat in juts two weeks on a ketogenic diet.⁶¹

20. Better Mood – Calmness of Mind, Joy, More Free Time

As well as better brain function and improved mental health on keto, let’s not overlook the simple, subtle and harder to measure but equally important benefits…

I just LOVE the calmness of mind and pure JOY that being in ketosis brings. It gives me a sense of ‘buoyancy’ in life and an ability to cope with life’s struggles with much more ease and grace.

In all honesty, for various reasons, my life has been exceedingly challenging over the past couple of years (maybe yours has been too?).

The keto diet has given me the clear head and calm mind to think things through rationally, make wiser decisions and act with more aplomb and grace (erm – Jesus provides most of that, but keto has helped and I believe He put me on the keto diet for that reason!).

I have found – and many of my clients too – that being on keto somewhat mysteriously gives you more free time! How?!

Well it just seems to clear a lot of mental headspace. When you’re not on an energetic and metabolic rollercoaster but on stable ground, it literally feels like you have more time for things and rather than just reacting to everyday events and pressures, you can be much more proactive.

All this is lovely ‘side benefit’ that I never would have expected. If you’ve tried keto, have you experienced this too? Let me know in the comments below. I you haven’t tried keto yet, give it a go and see for yourself!

21. More Money in Your Bank Account?

With a clear mind, stable energy and mood and better cognition…you could start that side project that you’ve been wanting to do for a while…

You could start a side business? Write that book you’ve been wanting to. (I wrote and had published my last book in 5 months on keto!) You could think about applying for promotion – your boss will likely notice your higher productivity. You could work more hours if you wanted…

All this means that your income could go up and you’d have more money in your bank.

Again, not a benefit that I would have expected but my extra productivity has allowed me to take on new projects and get them finished in quicker time that I would have on even the healthiest of non-keto diets.

[BTW, many people ask me about online business, if you’re interested in exploring this, I’d recommend you get this book and this book- both free, you just pay for shipping.]

So What Can We Conclude About the Keto Diet Benefits?

We’ve seen 21 solid gold keto diet benefits on this page.
The overwhelming evidence shows us that KETO WORKS! And when we follow a very well-formulated keto diet, we can expect very good things to happen and surprising health results.

Research study after research study tells us that reducing carbohydrates right down to bring us into nutritional ketosis is really a kind of panacea for virtually all health conditions.

One of the main reasons for this is keto’s insulin and blood sugar regulation effects and anti-inflammatory properties.

You only have to look through the huge volume of Instagram comments, Facebook posts and YouTube comments from people saying that keto has turned their life and health around to see it working in real lives for the better.

I found this selection in 2 minutes:

[YT, FB and Insta screenshots]

You can see the keto diet benefits in the real lives of people like you and me.

If I had a serious disease or wanted to shed those extra pounds, you can bet that the keto diet would be what I turned to…

As it is, I follow my own Keto Life meal plans a lot of the time anyhow and probably contributes to why I feel great, look young am fit and lean and have a sharper mind now at 40 than in my early 20s.

At this point, hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people around the world have benefited from a ketogenic lifestyle.

I’d love you to join us and experience keto for yourself.