Here’s the short version of Dr. Keith Runyan published today in “A Sweet Life” (February 23, 2016) on why he has chosen a Ketogenic Diet For Diabetes Management:
Carbohydrate is the macronutrient that raises blood glucose the most, so keeping consumption low is my primary goal. My protein intake did not change after starting a ketogenic low carb high fat diet. I completed The Great Floridian Triathlon in October 2012 without any sugar, food, or hypoglycemia thanks to my low carbohydrate ketogenic lifestyle.
Nutritional Ketosis
My diet keeps me in a state of nutritional ketosis*, the natural result of a low carbohydrate diet that instructs the fat cells to release fat and the liver to convert some of that fat into ketones. The body over time becomes metabolically flexible and able to utilize glucose, fat, and ketones, instead of just glucose and fat. This is especially important for those with diabetes who may experience hypoglycemia since ketones can supply the brain with fuel when blood glucose is temporarily low. The low carbohydrate ketogenic diet has also been found to be anti-inflammatory and improves cardiovascular risk factors in persons with metabolic syndrome.
To stay in continuous nutritional ketosis I keep my total carbohydrate content at about 50 grams/day, but others may require as little as 20 grams/day. By monitoring urine ketones, blood ketones, and/or breath ketones, I have confirmed nearly continuous nutritional ketosis. My dietary fat intake is fairly high as a percentage of calorie intake (about 75%), but the quantity of dietary fat (about 209 grams/day) is just enough to feel energetic and maintain a lean body composition. Hunger has never been a problem for me, but has become even less noticeable since starting my diet…
For more details on his daily intake please refer to the original source of this summary at: http://asweetlife.org/feature/38711/