Ok so if you want to heal your body with keto, dirty keto is not going to do it.    Dirty keto might help you lose some weight but it usually just changes out the crappy foods you eat with low carb crappy foods loaded with allergens and preservatives.   So, if you have an issue you want keto to address, the healing power of Keto is really going to come from eating as clean a version of keto as you can possibly stand

There are lots of allergens that cause inflammation and that you may be allergic to.  Some of these are:

wheat and all gluten containing grains such as barley, rye, millet and MORE and all their other forms like “wheat bran” “wheat germ”

dairy and all versions of dairy like whey protein, cheese, butter, maybe ghee (maybe not depending on your allergy)

corn and all versions of “frankencorn” like corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup

soy and all versions of “frankensoy” like soy protein isolate

STRICT KETO ADDRESSES ALL OF THESE EXCEPT DAIRY — because you should not be eating them if you are following strict keto.

If you follow strict keto, you will already be reducing your exposure to these common allergens.  That may be enough for a lot of people.  Are there other allergens?  OF COURSE!!   If you think you are allergic to something, see your doctor.  But you will probably find on strict keto that you feel better just not eating these foods.

For dairy, I personally have a dairy allergy which causes me to wheeze and my breathing feels asthmatic.  I recently did an experiment on the original Bulletproof Coffee recipe and I had good success with grass fed Kerrygold butter and did not get my usual dairy symptoms.  Dairy can stall out a lot of people on keto but it can also add delish things like cheese to your day so it is a personal choice.  If you are not allergic but also not sure if you and dairy are friends, try dropping it out of your diet for a couple of weeks and you will know.  You may do fine with cheese and butter (many people whose dairy sensitivities are digestive like lactose intolerance do just fine with cheese and butter) but other people really are better off avoiding all of it.  I personally see no reason to drink milk or use cream but if you love it and it doesn’t bother you, keep it.

ALL KETO — STRICT AND DIRTY – ADDRESSES INSULIN RESISTANCE

Insulin resistance will keep you fat and it will keep you unhealthy — it is THAT SIMPLE.   Yet it is also that hard.   Thin people often judge overweight people as lazy and unmotivated when the reality for a lot of overweight people is their hormones are MESSED UP.  The main villain here is usually insulin.  If you want to know all the science, Dr. Jason Fung’s book, The Obesity Code is THE MOST BADASS AWESOME BOOK ON INSULIN, INSULIN RESISTANCE and how it affects your body.  He also addresses how to fix it.  Personally I love to read but even if you are not a big reader and you are overweight or trying to figure the “why” of keto — HE IS THE GUY.   If you are super lazy, super busy or hate reading, you can follow him on YouTube or Facebook but I highly suggest reading the book — I promise it will be motivating  🙂

If you are on keto and your weight loss is super slow, you can add a fasting program to help — this addresses Insulin Resistance the best.  If you are new to fasting, Dr. Berg has a great online video on how to get started and he has great info in his books and of course, Dr. Jason Fung has a ton on fasting.  If you have never done it, DO SOME RESEARCH with one of these pros, you will be glad you did!!

 

TO BE HEALTHY YOU NEED NUTRIENTS – EATING CLEAN KETO GIVES YOU TONS OF WHOLE FOODS

Let’s be honest, there is nothing healthy about pork rinds.  I started keto as dirty because I like a diet coke once in a while and strict keto was very overwhelming.  I have gotten stricter as I have gone on because IT GETS EASIER.   Healthy keto has lots of nutrients (with great greens, veggies, meat, avocado)   Your body loves and performs best when you fill it with good nutrients and when these come in a pure form.  Fancy doctors call this “bioavailability”  that is how able your body can use it.  So for something like a cheap multivitamin with a hard coating, the bioavailability may be a lot lower than you think — like for some people NOT AT ALL.  That is why a lot of really smart experts suggest skipping cheap multivitamins, they have the wrong doses and often your body may not absorb anything you actually need.   GOOD QUALITY FOOD has lots of nutrients.  Eggs are loaded with nutrients (and seriously eat the whole egg so you get all of them).  There are some great high quality supplements for Keto – Dr. Berg makes some great ones and Bulletproof make some great ones.  You can ask your doctor for a vitamin deficiency test or you can order your own online and you can even order one on Amazon so seriously — they are cheap, get one and see.  You might not even need a supplement but you do need GOOD REAL FOOD so go eat some  🙂

WATCH YOUR NITRATES, SULFATES, CARRAGEENAN and MSG.

Ok so full honesty here.  I went on the Whole30 elimination diet a couple of years ago and I was like WTF is Carrageenan?  It was in NOTHING that I ate and it still is in NOTHING that I eat now.  BUT CHECK YOUR LABELS.  I actually went to the grocery store and did some online research because I thought I might be missing it under another name.  It is NOT good for you.  You will find it in mostly products that are emulsified.  So things like sour cream, dips, some yogurts, a lot of dairy products.   If you are eating organic, grass fed things, you will probably not find it but still check your labels especially if you used anything that is emulsified.    Nitrates and sulfates can be allergens.  People with nitrate sensitivity will feel it often with headaches and sulfate sensitivity often shows the same symptoms I get with dairy – wheezing, breathing issues.  These are both high in preserved foods like deli meat.  You may be fine with them but even if you are, you will still want to avoid MSG and Carrageenan, nobody needs those.

KETO WILL KICK YOUR ASS IF YOUR ELECTROLYTES ARE WHACKED

All forms of keto, strict or dirty, will hand you your ass if you don’t address electrolytes. You cannot heal your body with keto if you are feeling like garbage.  Sure you may not have that bad flu or a rash.  Thank God I never had a rash and my serious good vibes for those who do.  When I was a child I was bit by bugs about 100 times on one night.  SERIOUSLY — I was COVERED in bites and my face was so bitten.  It went away in a few days but I am almost 50 and I still remember it so I FEEL FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVE KETO RASH — how awful!!   For some people, you need to address your protein intake.  And for others, addressing electrolytes should help with some — but probably not all – of the rash issues so see your doctor for treatment and pain relief.

You may be a lucky person who eats the perfect day and needs no electrolyte support or you may not live somewhere hot where nature takes a toll.  I live in Atlanta and it is HOT in the summer.  Between the heat and Keto, I need electrolytes.  So I do take a supplement every day and i have no issues.  Some of the issues you can have are leg cramps, constipation, diarrhea, fatigue and more.   There are ways to get some of these electrolytes in your food – avocados are so popular on keto for this reason in addition to their taste, fat and vitamins.   If you want to do a supplement, Dr. Berg makes a tasty awesome one and Ultima is also a nice one.  If you are dirty keto, you can also drink Propel or Gatorade Zero or Powerade Zero but those do have sweeteners that may not agree with your body and are not strict keto.