Ketosis in healthy people: fad, evolution or mistake
Does it make sense for a healthy person to be in ketosis? Evolution versus symptoms: 500,000 years of history and a fad that divides opinion.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Ketosis for the healthy: passing fad, evolutionary legacy or mistake?
The ketogenic diet has gone from clinical therapy to mainstream nutritional trend. At its heart lies an uncomfortable question: if the human body has spent 500,000 years metabolizing fat and protein, does it make sense for a healthy person to force that metabolic state today?
One camp defends it with an evolutionary argument: carbohydrates as the main fuel have only been in the human diet for about 5,000 years, and ketosis would be the body's natural mode of operation. What's more, it allows 20-30 grams of carbs a day, enough to include strategic vegetables rich in selenium, folates or zinc, and keep the body in fat-burning mode.
The other side pulls no punches: ketosis in a healthy person is a fad, with adaptation symptoms that include sky-high cortisol, muscle stiffness and insomnia. And for those who train for strength, emptying glycogen with weights is precisely the stimulus they are looking for; afterwards the goal is to refill it, not eliminate it. Variety, they point out, remains the best pattern.
The exchange leaves an uncomfortable conclusion: it depends on what you consider healthy. If the goal is losing belly fat by cutting out carbs, it works. If the goal is performing at the gym or simply avoiding the unpleasant adaptation phase, the logic fades away. The question remains open, and everyone decides what counts as natural metabolism.
The ketogenic diet has gone from clinical therapy to mainstream nutritional trend. At its heart lies an uncomfortable question: if the human body has spent 500,000 years metabolizing fat and protein, does it make sense for a healthy person to force that metabolic state today?
One camp defends it with an evolutionary argument: carbohydrates as the main fuel have only been in the human diet for about 5,000 years, and ketosis would be the body's natural mode of operation. What's more, it allows 20-30 grams of carbs a day, enough to include strategic vegetables rich in selenium, folates or zinc, and keep the body in fat-burning mode.
The other side pulls no punches: ketosis in a healthy person is a fad, with adaptation symptoms that include sky-high cortisol, muscle stiffness and insomnia. And for those who train for strength, emptying glycogen with weights is precisely the stimulus they are looking for; afterwards the goal is to refill it, not eliminate it. Variety, they point out, remains the best pattern.
The exchange leaves an uncomfortable conclusion: it depends on what you consider healthy. If the goal is losing belly fat by cutting out carbs, it works. If the goal is performing at the gym or simply avoiding the unpleasant adaptation phase, the logic fades away. The question remains open, and everyone decides what counts as natural metabolism.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (58 replies).
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