You may have heard a lot about the Keto and Paleo diets and not sure what one is right for you. Keto vs Paleo, what are the differences?
The keto diet is high fat low carbs normally split into up to 70% Fat, 25% protein, and 5% carbs. The keto diet has been around since the 1920s and has a lot of health benefits.
The Paleo diet you could say has been around a lot longer as it is based on what our ancestors ate back in the paleolithic age, which is that they only ate food that was natural and could be caught or grown. In this day and age, there are way too many preservatives, additives, and processed foods that have been found to be bad for our health.
The Ketogenic Diet
The keto diet otherwise called the ketogenic diet has a very low carb and high-fat content in the diet. It simply means regulating the intake of carbohydrates and replacing it with the consumption of fat.
Once you deny your body the carbs it needs it, turns your body into a metabolic state which is known as ketosis.
How the diet works, is that it aims at using fat as a source of energy where the liver turns the fat into ketones which supply energy to the brain. This diet causes a sudden fall in insulin levels and weight.
For all the benefits of the Keto diet check out my article on the ketogenic diet – the ultimate beginner’s guide to keto.
If you’re looking for a keto diet program check out the 28-day keto challenge and the 3-week keto diet. Both of these provide you with meal plans which will help you out.
How it Works
The power of the ketogenic diet lies in the way it works and changes your metabolism process.
Usually, your body burns carbohydrates to get glucose which is the easiest molecule to convert into energy, and for that reason, the body will prefer to use it over other sources.
To process glucose, the body also has to produce insulin. With low carbohydrate intake, your body is deprived of its primary source of glucose, and it has to turn to alternatives, and given that the protein levels are also low, only fats remain. Such a situation leads the body to get into ketosis.
Ketosis is a natural process that the body often resorts to as a survival means when food is scarce mostly carbohydrates. During this stage, the body’s fat is the only remaining source of energy, and so it is broken down in the liver to produce ketones.
A keto diet naturally induces or pushes the body to this limit only this time it is not through a lack of food but rather through the limited intake of carbohydrates.
Given that there is no more glucose being produced, there is also no need for insulin. As the body produces more ketones, it reaps the numerous health benefits that come as a result of relying on fats for energy.
Keto for Health
There are so many diets that it is very difficult to make the right decision after a certain point. For this reason, you must first consider whether your inability to lose weight is in any way related to a health condition.
Once you know there are no health issues, it will be easier for you to lose weight and maintain it in the long run. Another thing to keep in mind is common sense when you are dieting, if you feel that something is wrong, or if a particular diet is not right for you, then listen to your instinct and find a diet that works for you.
If your tests show that your cholesterol is high, which has caused a number of other problems, then you should make the low-carbohydrate, low-cholesterol diet a part of your life.
It may be hard to believe, but if you make some changes in your eating habits, the situation may not get any worse and you will feel better in no time.
Benefits of Low Carbohydrates Diet
The biggest benefit of a diet low in carbohydrates and low in cholesterol is that it can lower cholesterol levels. Aside from that, it also has a positive impact on the HDL cholesterol level in your body.
The long-term benefit here is that heart disease can be kept at bay. When the LDL cholesterol level drops, your arteries will not be blocked, which is always beneficial! In addition, the low-carbohydrate, low-cholesterol diet is definitely a blessing.
In addition to improving your health, this diet helps you to lose weight in a healthy way. This way, your cholesterol levels remain constant. Since you do not carry extra body fat, your heart will be happy too.
If you follow a low-carbohydrate and low-cholesterol diet, you must avoid saturated fats and trans fat as well as carbohydrate-rich foods.
This diet focuses on the importance of lean meat, chicken, eggs, spinach, broccoli, asparagus, fish, seafood, lettuce, celery, and cauliflower.
If your doctor deems it necessary, you can also include a number of supplements to this list.
Once the low carbohydrate and low cholesterol diet are fully developed, good cholesterol (HDL) attacks the LDL which helps unblock the arteries.
There are meal plans on the Internet, but be sure to choose the one that contains your favorite foods. That way you stay motivated for longer.
The Paleo Diet
The paleo diet which is also known as the paleolithic diet or the caveman diet is a set of all-natural foods. This diet aims at imitating the meal practices our ancestors used a long time ago. The diet mainly consisted of whatever was brought in after the hunting and gathering.
Some of the tips to keep in mind about this diet.
1. Eat Like A Cave Man
Whatever our ancestors ate in the Paleolithic era is acceptable and considered a part of the Paleo diet. If the meal was not known by them it is not considered a part of the paleo diet. The reference comes in from way back and whatever meal was taken by them is now acceptable for the Paleo diet.
2. Sources are Important
Any paleo food had to have a natural source. It is necessary for any paleo advocate to establish and know the original source of whatever they were eating. Simply, livestock fed on grass which grew naturally and the animals gave the meat, the grain would feed the chicken which would produce the eggs and meat.
3. Fruits and Vegetables
All fruits are allowed whether candied or dried fruit they are still an inclusion in the diet. Since the plants grew naturally they gave our ancestors a source of food in terms of fruits and it acceptable to include them in the diet.
Fruits contain calories and are a very good source of fiber which adds to the benefits of taking fruits.
4. Stay Away From Processed Foods
During ancient times, there were no processed foods. As we all know now a lot of processed foods contain flavors, colorings, preservatives, and other condiments and additives which alters the original form of the natural foods.
Our ancestors would use a more natural means of preserving their foods such as smoking. For paleo advocates, they aim at consuming foods in their basic forms in order to avoid processed foods which are now a lot of foods in the market today.
5. Discourage the Use of Table Salt
In the Paleolithic Era salt was not used as an additive in a lot of meals. Meat has a lot of natural salt which makes it unnecessary for paleo people to use salt while cooking.
Adding more salt to modern diets has facilitated and escalated the number of high blood pressure victims due to the imbalance of electrolytes. Salt is avoided for a complete paleo diet.
6. Cooking is Allowed
When the ancestors came with a kill they would burn it as a way of making it safe to eat and also for preservation. This practice is recommended for the paleo diet and any necessary food that is meant to be cooked should be done so.
Although the diet is not against raw foods, people who take the diet can consume raw food such as fruits. It is highly recommended also to cook your food to kill off any unseen germs that may cause harm to you.
7. Paleo Beverage
The only drink that is acceptable to the people who take the paleo diet is water. Water is considered pure and people are encouraged to drink water only when thirsty.
The water source also matters and it should be spring water which is free of chemicals such as chlorine. Organic tea might be considered since its made of all-natural products, but organic tea did not exist back then therefore it is not included in the paleo diet.
Keto Vs Paleo Diet
Paleo is Not Low Carb
Paleo diet is basically a diet that has its roots from ancient times and it was considered a diet our ancestors ate. Since a lot of years have passed by we now encounter a lot of processed foods and sugary foods.
Long ago since the technology was not advanced people lacked even means of buying food and they had to go and gather for food. Their source of any meal was through hunting and gathering.
Fats are known to produce more energy compared to carbs and proteins which meant that they sourced the fat from fatty animals. Paleo diet aims at sourcing our fat and protein for energy purposes similar to the keto diet.
The difference is that the paleo diet allows users to consume potatoes, carrots, sweet potatoes, root vegetables, and other tubers. Simply, it aims at imitating the ancient way of living. This is not the case for the keto diet since it aims at keeping the insulin levels down and the ketone levels high. For people who prefer the keto diet avoid the tubers at all costs.
Paleo is Not High Fat
The Paleo diet is high in fat and its purest form spells out the high-fat content. For the paleo dieters, their diet keeps on changing which means the list of acceptable foods keeps on changing.
The huge problem with this diet is that nobody owns it. Since nobody owns it people can customize their own diet which contradicts the original form or idea.
There are some Paleo advocates who don’t like the idea of taking in high-fat foods. There is a portion of them who are even vegetarians.
Dairy Products
There is a bit of controversy about the dairy products for the people who take up the Paleo diet. The advocates of the Paleo diet try to mimic the ancient way of living where our ancestors never came into contact with dairy processed products.
Since those products are now in abundance the paleo advocates argue that there was no use for dairy products and the milk was used to wean the calf. They also had a notion that taking the cows’ milk would render the calf weak.
Due to the controversy which lies in the use of these dairy products by the people who take the Paleo diet, a different section refuses to take up milk stating there would be a problem and breach of the dietary needs while some would even encourage the use of different dairy products.
For the people who take the keto diet, dairy product consumption is highly advocated since it is a high source of fat. There are still people who take the keto diet and they don’t eat dairy products. The paleo diet holds a lot of permutation and contradictions compared to the Keto diet. The keto diet is simply low carb and high fat and nothing less or more.
