Health
keto diet – Everything you need to know
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Following a keto diet means getting more of your daily calories from fat, and fewer of them from carbohydrates. You could lose weight by following a keto diet, and there may be other benefits. Improvements in total cholesterol, blood sugar and blood pressure have been shown.
But should you follow a keto diet? If so, what foods do you need to eat, and which recipes should you use? We’ve got the answers. Find more about healthy eating, plus tons of recipes (healthy and indulgent) on our dedicated page.
What is a keto diet?
Normally the body converts carbohydrates to glucose to use as fuel. Following a ketogenic diet where carbs are in very short supply causes the body to produce ketones from stored fat – it’s an alternative fuel. Hence the diet is ketogenic. The bottom line is that after three or four days with little glucose available from your diet, the body starts to use fat as the primary fuel.
Consuming fewer carbohydrates means eating less sugar, rice, pasta and bread, for example, and also cutting out sugary drinks and more (see below). A keto diet usually reduces daily carb consumption to under 50g a day, although it can be as little as 20g a day.
What are the keto diet foods?
When you’re on a keto diet, you can eat meat, including beef, pork, poultry, lamb and game. When you’re choosing meat, remember that processed meats can contain carbs, so check the labels, or avoid them altogether and prepare your own recipes using unprocessed meat.
Fish and other seafood is fine, too, with fatty fish like salmon or mackerel preferable.
Eggs, butter, cheese and cream are also keto diet friendly. (Milk, by the way, contains sugar, so see foods to avoid, below).
You can also eat vegetables, but think leafy and green mostly, and stick to those that grow above ground, so that’s cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli and so on. Potatoes are out (see foods to avoid, below).
Other things you can include in your diet? Nuts – but swerve higher carb cashews and pistachios and opt for pecans, brazils and macadamias. Seeds like flax and chia, are okay, too, as are avocados, and oils such as olive and coconut.
Fruit is generally a no-no (see foods to avoid, below), but you can have berries such as strawberries and raspberries in small portions.
Overall, most of your daily calories (see above) should be obtained from fat, which will come from meat or fish, the fat you cook with, and even high-fat sauces.
Which are the foods to avoid on a keto diet?
Some of what you’ll need to avoid will probably suggest itself to you, while other food and drink can catch you out.
Sugar in its many guises is on the banned list – and that includes foods like honey and maple syrup. You can’t add sugar to your tea and coffee, of course, nor can you have soft drinks. However, you’ll also need to avoid fruit juices and sports drinks.
Breakfast cereals are out as well. Sugar is also used in lots of products where you might not expect to see it – think ready meals and sauces. Always check labels. Naturally, you’ll be saying no to sweets, cakes, biscuits, chocolate bars, ice cream…
Watch out for milk in your drinks. A splash to whiten is OK, but skip the lattes and Frappuccinos, Starbucks fans. And while we’re on the subject of drinks, beer is out, too. Generally, plain water, and black and white tea without sugar are best, and you could even have a small glass of wine on a special occasion.
Carbs: say goodbye to bread, rice, pasta, and potatoes. Just for the avoidance of doubt, that includes crisps and chips.
Legumes: perhaps surprisingly, you’ll also need to cut out legumes – including beans, chickpeas, lentils – to follow a keto diet.
Fruit: You’ll also need to step away from fruit aside from berries (see keto diet foods, above).
How to follow a keto diet plan
Generally, if you follow a keto diet, what you eat daily should be around 70% to 80% fat, 10% to 20% protein and 5% to 10% carbohydrate.
To attain the required fat consumption of the diet, you’ll probably need to eat some at each meal. Your protein intake, on the other hand, will be moderate. Bear in mind that this isn’t a high fat and high protein regime – like the Atkins diet, for example. Opt for free range poultry, wild-caught fish and organic beef for preference.
You can follow the diet plan if you’re vegetarian as you can consume eggs and dairy products. As a vegan it’s not considered a healthy option because eating legumes and grains is key to obtaining essential nutrients on a plant-based diet.
If you’re going on a keto diet to lose weight, programmes frequently suggest following it until the weight you want to lose is shed. Then, you are advised to return to the diet perhaps some weeks of the month or some days of the week.
Stay healthy on a keto diet
A keto diet can be a healthy choice for many people but the ratio of fat, carbs and protein needed can vary from one person to another.
If you are diabetic, discuss the diet with your doctor before starting as it’ll likely involve changes to medication and increased monitoring of your blood sugar.
On medication for high blood pressure? Again consult your doctor before starting a keto diet.
Don’t start on a keto diet if you’re breastfeeding.
Be aware that restricting carbs can make you feel irritable, hungry and tired, among other possibilities. This could be a temporary effect, however.
Remember, also, that your diet should still be balanced so you’re obtaining all the vitamins and minerals you need. Also crucial is sufficient fibre.
Find keto recipes
Cooking from scratch makes sticking to a keto diet easier as you won’t need to scan lists of ingredients of pre-prepared foods to check for hidden carbs. Dishes like bacon and eggs are on the agenda, together with meals such as omelette, scrambled eggs and frittata. You can also base meals around chicken, beef or fish, for example.
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A new report from the Heart and Stroke Foundation shows that women are more likely to suffer adverse mental health effects after a stroke, and that services and supports are lacking.
The report, Stroke and Mental Health: The Invisible and Inequitable Effects on Women, was released on Thursday.
Dr. Clair Barefoot, clinical psychologist at the Nova Scotia Rehabilitation Centre, says recovering from a stroke can take a big toll on people.
That, coupled with the additional roles women often take on—such as caring for children, can cause additional strain and force them to leave rehab early.
Barefoot says supports and services are generally lacking across Canada.
She says it is quite difficult and expensive for people to find personalized care, so she would like to see more psychologists in hospitals and more funding for the private sector so that people can access more of those services after they’re discharged.
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Cancer test maker Grail Inc said on Friday that its telemedicine vendor erroneously sent letters to about 400 patients suggesting they may have developed cancer.
Grail’s flagship cancer detection blood test Galleri is designed to detect more than 50 types of cancer before symptoms appear.
The company, owned by Illumina Inc, ILMN-Q said the letters were mistakenly sent by PWNHealth due to a software issue and that it “was in no way related to or caused by an incorrect Galleri test result”.
Grail said it had reached out to the patients immediately after the issue, adding that no patient health information has been disclosed or breached due to this.
The software issue being faced by PWNHealth has now been resolved, it said.
Illumina is currently appealing regulatory orders in the U.S. and EU, which are asking the gene sequencing company to divest Grail after it jumped regulators to close its acquisition of the cancer test maker.
Unprotected sex with more than one partner in a six month period is the biggest risk factor behind a recent rise in syphilis cases in Waterloo region, according to a report on infectious disease trends from Region of Waterloo Public Health.
The annual infectious diseases surveillance report gathers and analyzes information on the infectious diseases that physicians, laboratories and hospitals are required to report to the region’s public health unit in line with Ontario Public Health Standards.
Infectious diseases are illnesses caused by microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, and parasites that have the potential to cause serious illness and outbreaks.
There were 116 reports of infectious syphilis in the region last year, a rate of 17.8 per 100,000 population compared to 23.1 across the province. The number is down from a high of 143 reported cases in 2021, and a rate of 22.2 per 100,000 that was higher than the provincial average of 20.6.
The report says rates of syphilis, while lower than the province, have increased substantially in recent years, especially among females. This trend has also been observed in the province, which suggests a shift in epidemiology and sexual health practices.
The most common sexually transmitted infections in Waterloo Region continue to be chlamydia and gonorrhea.
There were 1,388 cases of chlamydia reported across the region last year, a rate of 192.8 per 100,000 population compared to 255.9 provincially. That’s down slightly from the age-standardized rate of 196.9 per 100,000 reported in 2021.
Gonorrhea case counts continued to spike across the province in 2022, while experiencing a slight decline in the rate of infection in Waterloo region.
Waterloo region reported 266 cases last year, a rate of 38.2 per 100,000. That’s compared to 77.5 per 100,000 province-wide.
Across the board, the demographic with the highest number of cases of sexually transmitted infections locally and across the province is the 20 to 29 age group.
Mpox, previously known as monkeypox, was declared a disease of global public health concern and became a newly reportable disease in Ontario in 2022.
There were only four local cases of mpox last year. Public Health says it has been monitoring the situation, working with health care providers to provide up-todate treatment guidance, and providing mpox vaccines to high-risk individuals.
The mpox virus is most commonly spread to people through close, physical contact with an infected person.
Campylobacter enteritis and salmonellosis were the most common enteric diseases in Waterloo Region in 2022. The local rates for enteric diseases were similar to or lower than those of the province.
Risk factors for enteric illnesses such as Campylobacter enteritis and salmonellosis include consuming undercooked meats and unpasteurized dairy products, ingesting contaminated food or water, and contact with infected persons.
Rates of vaccine preventable diseases in Waterloo Region were similar to those of the province. The most common vaccine preventable diseases in Waterloo Region were pneumococcal disease and pertussis (whooping cough).
In 2022, as we returned to normal activities, we saw a return of circulating respiratory viruses including pertussis with rates higher than had been seen during the first two years of the pandemic.
Public Health says immunization is the best way to prevent whooping cough. Pneumococcal vaccine is also recommended for infants, older adults 65 years and older, and those at high risk from the infection.
Region of Waterloo Public Health undertakes a number of activities to prevent or reduce the burden of infectious diseases in the community.
Programs and services include case management, contacts and exposures for diseases of public health significance; inspections, investigations and outbreak management, including community outbreaks and those in institutions; health promotion activities and services for primary care providers, emergency service workers, childcare providers, and other community groups; and clinic-based services for sexual health, immunization, and tuberculosis screening and management.
Region of Waterloo Public Health says it will provide highlights of respiratory disease trends, including influenza, in a report to council this fall.
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