These days, lots of people are ditching carbs and embracing fat to follow the ketogenic diet. They love the rapid weight loss it brings and don’t seem to mind not being able to eat fruits, grains and such. But new research has found a catch in the trendy diet: following it long-term may actually reverse the benefits.
A new study from Yale looked into the effect of the keto diet on a type of immune cell called gamma delta T-cells in mice. They found that getting into a ketogenic state causes these metabolically protective cells to expand around the body, lowering blood sugar and inflammation levels in as little as a week. But when the mice stayed on the diet longer than seven days, the cells depleted, putting the mice at higher risk of diabetes and obesity.
And on top of that, after two months on keto, the mice “gained significantly more weight. These findings have added to the debate experts have on the long-term health effects of the low-carb, high-fat diet and they say more research is needed to understand the benefits and potential harm it could cause.
Source: Women's Health