Keto helps you lose belly fat

In this article, you will learn how belly fat leads to health problems and why the keto diet is the best way to burn fat.

Why belly fat (visceral fat) is bad for your health

It is known that being overweight or obese can increase the risk of serious diseases, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and certain types of cancer.

But recent evidence suggests that at the individual level, the distribution of body fat is a much more accurate way of assessing health risks. In other words, where you have fat may matter as much as how much fat you have.

• Subcutaneous fat: A layer of fatty tissue just below the surface of your skin anywhere on your body. Subcutaneous fat is normal. Even if you have this type of excess fat, it is not very scary.
• Visceral fat: abdominal fat that forms in the abdominal cavity and surrounds the stomach, liver and intestines. It increases the level of inflammation in the body and leads to health problems, which is why visceral fat is called "heart attack fat."
• Ectopic fat: This type of fat is found in abnormal places and is extremely harmful to health. For example, excess fat in the liver, heart, or muscles.

Differences in fat distribution may explain why some overweight people are "metabolically healthy" while others who are not overweight may have cardiovascular disease and other health problems due to the presence of more "heart fat." attack ".

Fortunately, there is an easy way to assess how much visceral fat you have and how it affects your risk of health problems.

The larger the waist circumference, the more visceral fat.

How does keto burn belly fat?

• Reducing carbohydrate intake lowers insulin levels. On a high-carb diet, insulin suppresses fat burning, but lower blood sugar and insulin levels on a keto diet make it easier to burn stored fat. In some cases, keto-adapted people can burn almost 10 times more fat than others.
• In the absence of carbs, keto forces your body to burn fat for fuel both during training and at rest. On other diets, fat burning occurs primarily during fasting (including sleep) and exercise. But with keto, you can burn fat 24/7.
• Ketonesformed in ketosis, naturally reduce hunger and food cravingscreating a mild calorie deficit. The result is stable and long-term weight loss without counting calories.

Scientific evidence for the effectiveness of keto

There are dozens of clinical trials currently underway with thousands of participants that can confirm the effectiveness of the keto diet in burning fat.

Here are some of the main findings:

1. A meta-analysis of 13 studies from 2013 involving 1,415 subjects found that, compared to a low-fat diet, the keto diet resulted in longer lasting weight loss as well as improved health (source).
2. A 2012 study comparing low-calorie diets and low-carb, high-fat keto in patients with type 2 diabetes found that the keto diet resulted in more significant reductions in body weight, waist circumference (belly fat), and blood glucose levels ( a source).
3. A separate 2012 study of 58 obese children between the ages of 8 and 18 found that adherence to the keto diet resulted in greater reductions in body weight, fat mass, waist circumference, fasting insulin, and insulin resistance compared to a low-calorie diet. (a source).
4. A review of 12 studies of the keto diet in obese adults in 2020 found that the average weight loss was between 10 and 15.6 kg, and the average decrease in the waist by 12.6 cm.The results of keto subjects were stable over the follow-up period of up to 2 years, and 92.5% of them were able to stick to the diet (source).