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Keto diet, the low-carb high-fat diet, has become popular in recent years not only because of its weight loss benefits but also because it helps in regulating the blood sugar.
And, a new study also shows that the keto diet could also be very beneficial for your gut health.
The gut or the gastrointestinal tract is a group of organs that includes the mouth, esophagus, stomach, pancreas, liver, gallbladder, small intestine, colon, and rectum.
Gut health is important to your body because it is where all the food that we eat is broken down into a simple form that can enter the bloodstream and be delivered as nutrients in your entire body.
In the last 20 years, a number of studies have shown links between gut health and the immune system, mood, mental health, autoimmune diseases, endocrine disorders, skin conditions, and cancer.
A small study authored by Peter Turnbaugh, which was published in the journal Cell, last May 20, showed that the keto diet could make significant alterations to the microbes in your gut.
Microbes are trillions of microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, and other living things collectively known as the microbiome.
According to the study, the keto diet's effect on the microbiome could strengthen the immune system while helping reduce inflammation.
Turnbaugh, an associate professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of California, San Francisco, said that the most significant finding of his study was that the slow rise of ketone levels also caused a slow change in the gut composition.
The rise in ketone levels is brought about by the keto diet, which reduces the carbohydrate intake. In fact, this is the core of the keto diet, which is to put your body into ketosis, a metabolic state, for efficient burning of fat for energy. It also turns fat into ketones in the liver for energy supply to the brain.
Turnbaugh added that his research showed that altering the gut is possible through the ketones.
This means that the benefits of the keto diet will not only be seen on the outside of your body, but it can also be good within, specifically to your gut health.
Image credit courtesy of Joel/Flickr
