Is Now A Good Time To Start A Keto Diet?

There is no doubt that a ketogenic diet can be optimal for health, but is now the right time to switch or “get back on the wagon” so to speak….?

Is now a good time to start a keto diet?

Keto Diet and Protective γδT Cell Responses Against Influenza Infection

You may have seen this study that has been going around which talks about the influence a ketogenic diet has on protective γδT cell responses against influenza virus infection.

Firstly, this study was done on mice, and it was studied within the influenza virus infection (e.g. flu). Honestly, to say this also applies to the human body is a stretch.

Is now a good time to start a keto diet?

The stress of changing diets at a time like this is unnecessary.

If you’re already following a ketogenic diet, then, by all means, stick with it.

If you’re wondering if you should start a keto diet, I’d suggest instead focusing on eating real food, not going strictly ketogenic.

What Should You Do Instead?

So, what do you do instead? I would suggest going back to basics. This doesn’t have to be a ketogenic diet, this is just about eating real food (if you can). Read more about this HERE

I would also like to bring your attention to your daily step count, which according to this study, a greater number of daily steps is significantly associated with lower all-cause mortality.

The magic number is between 8,000 and 10,000. Anything more might be somewhat beneficial, but ensuring you reach that number (even in isolation) is important.

Frida Teran has a great post on her Instagram account which goes into this study in more detail which I have linked below:

 

View this post on Instagram

 

🚶🏻‍♀️Ever wondered whether those 8-10k daily steps actually make a difference in your health? – 👟Previous studies have been done on step counts and mortality. However, these mostly involved older adults 👴🏻👵🏼 or people with debilitating chronic conditions 🩺. – 👩🏻‍🔬A new observational study published in JAMA earlier this week aimed to describe the dose-response relationships between daily step count 👟 and step intensity and mortality in a representative sample of US adults aged 40 years or older. – 🔍HYPOTHESIS: taking more steps and stepping at a higher intensity are associated with lower mortality risk. – 📝STUDY DESIGN: 4,840 participants aged 40 and older wore accelerometers for up to seven days between 2003 and 2006 to determine daily step counts and step intensity (or cadence; steps/min). The participants were then followed for mortality through 2015 via the National Death Index. – 📊FINDINGS: Compared with taking 4,000 steps per day, a number considered to be low for adults, a daily step count of 8,000 was associated with a 51% lower risk for ALL-cause mortality. In contrast, higher mortality was seen for those with no extended stepping bouts and those with a daily count of less than 4000 steps. Surprisingly, this was independent on step intensity! – 🔑 TAKE-HOME MESSAGE: Don’t let your non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) drop too much. If you can still go out for walks, even if it’s to your backyard, do it! – ⚽️Other ways to boost NEAT include cooking, yard work, cleaning, and of course all of those handstand and pushup challenges🤸🏻‍♀️. – 🏡Continuing to work from home? Swap your chair for a yoga ball or upgrade your workspace with a standing desk. – 💪🏼 Just make sure to #KeepMoving Study: Saint-Maurice, P.F. et al. Jama 323, 1151–1160 (2020).

A post shared by Frida Teran (@afridateran) on Mar 28, 2020 at 12:23pm PDT

Here are some key takeaways that you can implement right now to ensure you are best prepared whilst taking it back to basics.

• Eat a simple diet, mostly containing real food
• Turn off TV/phones 1 hour before bedtime
• Eat at caloric maintenance, either by tracking or by using the hunger system.
• Get 10,000 steps any way you can.
• Try not to consume alcohol.

We will all get through this. Remember to practice social distancing where you can. Together we can get through.