Obesity- The Carbohydrate Insulin Model

Last week one Endocrinologist, Dr David Ludwig from Harvard wrote a paper on the “Carbohydrate Insulin model” as a cause of the current obesity epidemic.

The contents were hailed as “revolutionary and new” and of course massively controversial because not only does it challenge traditional science, it indirectly beats up on Big Food and the Sugar Lobby.

This paper published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, a journal which is usually lock step with all things from “traditional science” caused a huge kerfuffle and rebuttals from all corners of science.

Now, Dr Ludwig stopped far short of recommending keto and stated “Low carb for some” so he was not willing to face or state what millions of people around the world already know- Keto is safe, effective and can be maintained for long periods of time.

At least not willing to face it in a traditional journal. One wonders what his personal practices are!

The usual suspects crop up, “How can you recommend such an unbalanced diet!” “Isn’t it all red meat and fat?!” “You’ll never convince me that its healthy!”

I’ve said it before, carbs are non essential, you can live with minimal carbs and you will never completely eliminate them nor should you try.

And so many of those saying these things are STILL fat or overweight and cannot seem to find an answer for the excess body fat they carry. I will never forget the talk I gave to some local dieticians many of whom I knew back in the day when they were younger and lean. A decade of high carb diets and the entire front row was overweight/obese.

And still preaching the energy model of calories in calories out.

By the way for the record, I do not claim to have anything to do with the creation of the Keto diet, only anticipating the curve and going on it for health and aesthetic reasons back in 2012. It took a lot longer to write the book mainly because we did not want it to just be another Keto recipe book. We wanted to point to the growing body of science and anti-aging information that surrounds this style of eating.

I have personally said before I do not proselytize nutrition. Any ignorance aside, It’s a personal choice of free will. We hear the words “MY Truth” bandied about all over the place these days as if “Truth” needed a personal pronoun.

Here is THE TRUTH!

Keto does not work for everyone, but it works for a thunderin’ herd of people.

Any vitamin deficiencies incurred with the various types of Keto and low carb diets can be addressed the same way Vegans and Vegetarians address B vitamin deficiencies- take a well formulated supplement.

Keto is not limited to red meat and high fat only although that certainly works. Our book “The Keto Edge” has many low carb keto friendly recipes that contain more vegetables than meat.

The article by Dr Ludwig seems a little like grandstanding to me – using a hot topic to generate interest. The good Dr himself comments on how much traction his article has gotten.

But honestly just because it’s in the AJCN and has pissed off the sugar lobby and no doubt a lot of dietitians many of whom are fat because of excess carb intake, doesn’t make it revolutionary.

If you want to read something revolutionary, read the “Keto Edge” and find out about all the anti-aging truth wrapped around a low carb or keto diet.

And if you want to DO SOMETHING revolutionary, get a few jars of Keto Gen and get started on the recipes in the book and watch your body transform and look younger as you shed body fat.

But one caveat- don’t add carbs to a keto diet. Carbs are the deadly ingredient, not fat!

Here’s to a Leaner Younger and Stronger You!

Dr Dave

Reference: Med Page Today Oct 12 2021

2 thoughts on “Obesity- The Carbohydrate Insulin Model”

  1. Hi Doc,
    Onboard with you. No probs with intermittent fasting, OMAD or other calorie restriction protocols.
    I live in a hot climate with a lot of free time, so I drink a fair amount of beer.
    Will I sabotage ketosis drinking beers. I have a choice of wheat or other traditional grain beers OR I can consume rice derived beers. Is gluten a problem after the fermentation process ? I believe that rice beers may contain arsenic and heavy metals !
    Any thoughts, comments or advice would be greatle appreciated.

    Cheers

    1. Thank you for your support! Beer absolutely can take you out of Ketosis, especially ‘regular’ beer (it’s basically drinking bread!). With that said, there are a number of low calorie beers on the market that are very low in carbs that you could drink in moderation without effecting your ketosis. Of course the best option would be to cut it out completely, but I realize for most that isn’t practical. Cutting back, even if you’re drinking the lower calorie (and lower carb) varieties is the only option.

      Everyone has a different threshold for carb intake / ketosis. The only way to be certain is to test (there are strips available on the market) to find out where your threshold is, and then stick to that regiment at a minimum. Adding in something like our Ketogen can help put you back into ketosis if you go a bit overboard on occasion.

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