Top 10 Nutrition Myths That Just Won’t Die

Once the exclusive purview of epileptics (to control seizures) and crazy bodybuilders, the keto diet is now the “it” diet of the masses, having completely defeated Weight Watchers.

It is easy to see how it happened. The ketogenic diet allows people to eat as much fat as they want, and they can practically watch them shrink from day to day. But the ketogenic diet isn’t all sun and fried margaritas. It has some drawbacks, some of which are serious, and it’s not the best diet for weightlifters.

Here are some of the issues with the ketogenic diet that make me a little itchy:

bad nutrition

Ketogenic dieters cut out entire food groups, often making them deficient in vitamin D, calcium, magnesium, phosphorous, and essential fatty acids. Keto dieters can solve many of those problems by taking multivitamins, but that’s a poor and uncertain replacement for nutrients in real food. Beyond that, missing out on dozens or even hundreds of the polyphenols found in grains, fruits, wine, and even beer is like playing Super Mario Bros. and not bothering to collect all the super mushroom power-ups.

Bad for strength athletes

There’s some evidence that ketogenic diets might work well for endurance runners and Alaskan sled dogs, but if you’re a weightlifter who relies on short bursts of energy, forget it.

bad for the intestines

Giving up carbs means getting rid of fiber. Any long-term reduction in actual body weight may be offset by the weight of the constantly accumulating reservoir of impacted feces in your intestines.

bad crotch

Despite the alliterative name, Keto Crotch is not the newest member of the Marvel Universe (Peter Parker, Matt Murdoch, Jessica Jones, etc, etc). If it was, I doubt his superpower would be useful in fighting crime, except maybe in some very unusual and specific circumstances.

Apparently, all meat consumption changes vaginal pH, and the lower acidity creates a hospitable environment for undesirable bacteria, leading to possible infections, an unpleasant odor, and possibly a raccoon infestation.

Bad blood

The dangers of high cholesterol aren’t conclusive, but that doesn’t mean they don’t matter at all, and high cholesterol is what you get when you eat saturated fat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

But the worst part of the ketogenic diet, at least for people who want to gain muscle, is that getting into ketosis robs amino acids from the muscle to fuel other things. Oh, and low carbs lead to high cortisol, which also affects how you build muscle.