Ketosis Need Not And Should Not Be Part Of Low-Carb Eating? Oh REALLY?!

Posted by Jimmy Moore on February 21 in Health

One of the most asked about aspects of livin' la vida low-carb has got to the issue of ketosis. There is so much misinformation about there about this very natural state that the body goes through when you are on a low-carb diet (primarily confusing it with a serious condition that diabetics must be careful of called ketoacidosis--NOT the same as ketosis). As such, there may be confusion that lingers out there among my readers who are just learning about this way of eating.

In this recent blog post where I provided some "quickie one-liner" responses to some e-mails, I made the following statement:

Being in ketosis is like being pregnant--you either are or you're not; regardless of what the Ketosticks show you, if you are eating less than 30g carbohydrates a day, then you ARE in ketosis.”

One of my readers named Charles Fred decided to respond to my statement which he disagreed with and it gets to the very heart of this issue about ketosis. Here's what he wrote:

Your statement reflects today’'s informed opinion, but my article in work, “Unified Physiology of the Metabolic Syndrome,” has given me an unusual perspective which for the sake of brevity I’'ll state dogmatically.

Ketosis need not and should not be part of low-carb eating. Low-carb diets should never be labeled as “ketogenic” diets. Ketosis appears to be an “Induction” phase of low-carb eating, but in fact it is a last ditch response to inadequate glucose. As such it is either temporary or avoidable.

Low-carb eating is the evolution-derived diet of humans (unlike other primates). Humans are carnivores, hunters, because human evolution happened pre-fire and pre-agriculture when very few carbs were edible. For carnivores, gluconeogenesis in the liver supplies all necessary glucose.

But if someone abruptly switches from high carbs to very low carbs, gluconeogenesis will be inadequate to supply enough glucose - causing weakness, dizziness and ketosis.

Well if gluconeogenesis is supposed to be adequate, why does it fail? When you eat carbs they are stored as glucose (glycogen) in your glucose fuel tank - your liver. When you manufacture glucose from protein via gluconeogenesis it is stored in that same fuel tank, intermingled with those dietary carbs.

Enzymes, including gluconeogenic enzymes, are expressed only as needed. If your glucose storage is kept full by dietary carbs, expression of gluconeogenic enzymes is reduced. Eventually your gluconeogenic machinery becomes atrophied, inadequate to supply 100% of your glucose requirements.

So, contrary to usual practice, the proper way of switching from high-carb to low-carb is to gradually reduce dietary carbs over the course of about a month, inciting gradual rebuilding of gluconeogenic machinery. Then all those “Induction” woes which convince many that low-carb is not for them are avoided - as is ketosis.

Did you get all that? Find out what low-carb experts Jackie Eberstein, Regina Wilshire, Dr. Jeff Volek, Dr. Eric Westman, Dr. Richard Feinman, and Cassandra Forsythe had to say about Mr. Fred's missive on ketosis by clicking here.