Pregnancy – Keto Tips and Tricks

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The Keto Diet And PCOS

September 14

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Keto Diet, Pregnancy, Weight Loss, Wellness

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Having PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome) affect many different areas of a woman’s life. PCOS can influence weight, along with other things. There are a lot of questions around managing PCOS weight gain and diet. One frequently searched question is, “the keto diet and PCOS”, generating over seven million results.

About PCOS

Before we get into it, we should go over some of the basics of PCOS. According to the Office on Woman’s Health (OWH), which is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, PCOS is health due to having unbalanced reproductive hormones. Imbalance hormones create problems in the ovaries. Eggs may not develop the way they should with PCOS. Or the egg may not release during ovulation.

There is a range of symptoms with PCOS irregular periods, infertility, severe acne, weight gain, and excess hair growth, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). Up to four out of five women with PCOS have to deal with both the JPCOS condition and issues with their weight.

PCOS can be managed using hormonal birth control and other medical interventions. However, managing your lifestyle, like managing your weight, could also alleviate the symptoms, per the ACOG.

And that is why the question about the keto diet and PCOS comes up so often. This article will talk about what you need to know about the keto diet and its influence on PCOS symptoms.

Is being on a keto diet helpful if you have PCOS?

There’s a lot to unpack here. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), PCOS patients frequently have to deal with insulin resistance. Being insulin resistant means your body can’t use the insulin it produces effectively. Because it’s not effectively used, your body has a hard time getting blood sugar into your cells for energy. Also, being insulin resistant increases the likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes. It can also lead to a condition called acanthosis nigricans, patches of thickened darkened skin.

How does a keto diet come into play here?

A keto diet is a very low-carb, high-fat, diet that causes your body to use energy from fat for its fuel instead of sugar. Following the keto diet will limit your intake of carbohydrates to 50g per day or less. Although some people keep their carbs down to 20g or less per day!

Our bodies convert carbohydrates into glucose (blood sugar). Insulin is needed to move the glucose into our cells to be used as fuel. By limiting how many carbs you consume can help to reduce the insulin resistance that might happen if you have PCOS. In addition, having lean body mass and losing excess weight helps our bodies with insulin resistance in the long term.

There’s limited evidence suggesting the keto diet can help people with PCOS lose weight and manage their symptoms. There is a study in the Journal of Translational Medicine by the Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Padua, Padua, Italy titled, “Effects of a ketogenic diet in overweight women with polycystic ovary syndrome”. The study followed 14 women who were medically overweight with PCOS on a keto diet for 12 weeks. The women experienced significant weight loss, averaging 20 lbs loss and a reduction in their body mass index (BMI) xxx https://snip.ly/r5mjat xxx. There was also a decrease in both their glucose and insulin levels. Additionally, there was a noticeable decrease in testosterone in their blood. The researchers concluded based on the data, that the keto diet is “… a valuable non-pharmacological treatment for PCOS”.

Not only does the keto diet can help people with PCOS lose their excess weight. It can lease to the resumption of ovulation and improved fertility, according to Dr. Jessica Shepherd, a Texas ob-gyn.

The ACOG says just weight loss alone can help regulate a woman’s period if they have PCOS. The note is that even small amounts of weight loss can lead to improved regulation. Weight loss is also tied to improved insulin and cholesterol levels, and relieving excess hair growth, ance, and other symptoms.

Given all of this, considering a keto diet when you have PCOS is probably a good idea.

Is the keto diet safe for women with PCOS?

The short answer is “YES”. You can easily begin a keto diet on your own. There are plenty of resources out there to help you. Everything from the book, “The Keto Diet for Dummies”, to having a custom keto meal plan expertly created just for you based on your circumstances and goals xxx /plan xxx.

Because PCOS is an underlying medical condition, it’s suggested you speak to your doctor and/or a nutritionist before starting a new diet.

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Can You Go On A Keto Diet While Breastfeeding?

by Ryan Roberts

August 24

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Keto Diet, Pregnancy, Wellness

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Even though the keto diet has been around for over 100 years, it has gained a lot of popularity recently. But how well does keto work for you after having a baby? If you’re nursing, then what you eat is very important. That’s obvious since breastmilk is your baby’s only source of nutrition until they start solid food. So, can you go on a keto diet while breastfeeding?

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What’s keto?

Some people wrongly think of keto as the new Atkin’s diet. But if anything, it’s the other way around because the keto diet was developed over 40 years prior to the Atkins diet.

Both diets are low-carb diets, but the keto diet is more strict when it comes to carbs and is also a high-fat diet with moderate amounts of protein. The keto diet is designed to keep your body in a state of ketosis where it uses stored fat as its fuel.

Related reading: Your Guide To The Keto Diet – Video

The keto diet has become so popular because a lot of people have used it to lose weight and keep it off. But it’s a very strict diet. Your macronutrient distribution looks like this: about 75% of your calories come from fats, 20% comes from protein, and 5% from carbohydrates (that’s about 40g/day, or a little less than 2 medium bananas). There are no cheat days on the keto diet because just one misstep will take you out of ketosis. However, there’s good news, because most of the keto-friendly foods are quite filling you’re less likely to succumb to cravings.

The foods you’ll eat the most on a keto diet are meat, fatty fish, cheese, butter, and eggs. These foods are also good foods to be eating while breastfeeding too. To stay in ketosis you’ll want to avoid added sugars, alcohol, processed food, grains, fruit, and starchy foods, as well as unhealthy fats like mayonnaise and vegetable oil.

Some people experience some side effects when they first start on their keto journey. A new ketoer may experience fatigue, digestion problems, muscle aches, etc. All together these symptoms are referred to as the “keto flu”. Read this article for more details.

Related reading: The Keto Flu: Symptoms, Causes, And Remedies

Can you go on a keto diet while breastfeeding?

Because your body is sustaining an entirely separate little human as well as yourself, breastfeeding is demanding on your body. This means your body is using a lot of energy and needs more calories than normal. A breastfeeding mother will need two to five hundred extra calories per day. Especially during the baby’s first stages when they are entirely dependent on milk and can’t take solid food.

By eating a well-balanced diet the extra calories won’t’ stick, they’ll go right into milk production for the baby. In fact, it’s somewhat of a common occurrence for nursing mothers to actually lose a little weight. Generally speaking, diets that cut calories while nursing is a bad idea. Because reducing calories to lose weight affects the supply of milk. The top priority is to ensure the baby is getting all the nutrients they need.

If a nursing mom puts herself into a calorie deficit, her body can go into a self-preservation mode. Because the body wants to preserve itself it will spend less energy producing milk and may even store some fat anticipating worse times – calorically speaking.

Because the keto diet is different than a weight loss diet and puts an emphasis on consuming high-fat foods. Although the keto diet is a low-carb diet, there isn’t any evidence that low-carb diets affect milk production. However, most pediatricians are unlikely to recommend anything except for the FDA-approved balanced diet (a.k.a., the standard American diet).

Because most keto-friendly foods are very filling, a nursing mother won’t actually eat as much as they would if they weren’t following the keto diet. Because mom may feel full it might be hard for her to reach her caloric target for the day, which means milk production may be reduced.

The keto diet can also cause slight dehydration. So a nursing mom will have to be aware of how much fluid she is ingesting and make sure it’s enough. Because dehydration will affect milk production too.

Summary

Without paying attention to your food and water consumption the keto diet can come with some health risks. The nursing mother has to be conscious of what she’s eating and the quantities of food she’s eating. She also has to remain aware of how her body is doing.

We would recommend absolutely DO NOT start a keto diet while you’re breastfeeding. Wait until the breastfeeding has ended to start a diet.

Because breastfeeding can have such an impact on your baby’s health and wellbeing, whatever you choose to do, keep your doctor informed – for both your sakes.

Are you ready to start your Keto Diet? One way to get started with a Keto Diet is to have an 8-week “Custom Keto Diet Plan” created for you based on your height, weight, age, level of physical activity, and personal weight goals. Click the banner to learn more about your customized keto diet plan, or click here to go straight to your custom keto diet meal planner.

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Ketosis And Pregnancy?

by Ryan Roberts

August 10

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Benefits, Keto Diet, Pregnancy

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What about ketosis and pregnancy?

It’s clear that the keto diet and the metabolic state of ketosis is safe for most adults. Keto is also known to have a lot of health benefits. But what about ketosis and pregnancy?

The question about ketosis being safe for pregnant woman and their unborn children is an important one to think about. This post will look into ketosis and pregnancy so you’ll be better informed.

Ketosis and pregnancy

Obviously, a woman’s body goes through many changes during their pregnancy. Their awareness and their partner’s awareness concerning food choices increase while trying to conceive. So how does ketosis affect conception?

Conceiving in ketosis

Ketosis may be beneficial to conception. Women with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) which can make conception difficult if not impossible, have been seen in studies to succeed with conception while following a keto diet. Because a well-planned keto diet is safe for the average person, it’s safe for a woman trying to conceive. This is especially so if she were eating the standard American diet or a high-carb diet.

Is ketosis safe during pregnancy?

One of the prevailing misconceptions about ketosis while pregnant is that ketosis will lead to Diabetic Ketoacidosis (DKA). DKA is quite harmful but entirely different than nutritional ketosis that comes from the keto diet.

Diabetic Ketoacidosis vs. Nutritional Ketosis

DKA is a metabolic state found in diabetics that aren’t properly managing their diet or insulin. This results in unnaturally high levels of ketones along with blood sugar levels that are three times higher than normal, or more. Causing a dangerous amount of acid in their body. Ketoacidosis needs to be avoided by everyone, not just women who are pregnant.
Nutritional Ketosis is a naturally occurring state of metabolism where the person’s body is using fat instead of carbohydrates for its energy. In this state, there are very low levels of ketones and blood sugar levels are normal. The body also has a healthy acidity.

Sometimes these get confused with one another and if can cause professionals to think that nutritional ketosis has the same effect as Diabetic Ketoacidosis. This is especially so because DKA can be harmful to the development of the fetus’s brain. Because of this, there’s belief ketosis is harmful to the developing baby. But that’s inaccurate!

Now for some facts

Naturally occurring ketosis during pregnancy

The majority of women who are pregnant suffer from morning sickness at the beginning of their pregnancy. Morning sickness brings nausea, reduced appetite, and aversions to some foods. Eat often becomes intermittent and in smaller amounts. Because of all of this, a pregnant woman is frequently, and temporarily, in and out of ketosis.

Let’s point out that ketosis is part of being human, naturally. For instance, the time between eating dinner and eating our first meal the next day is putting our bodies into a state of fasting. Even our first meal of the day is call breakfast… break the fast. And this happens to everyone, not just pregnant women.

Furthermore, pregnancy might be in favor of ketosis. Because according to the study, “Starvation in human pregnancy: hypoglycemia, hypoinsulinemia, and hyperketonemia”, ketone levels are about three times higher in pregnant women after an overnight fast than in non-pregnant women.

Late-stage pregnancy and ketosis

Ketosis often occurs naturally in late-stage pregnancies. Ketones are used by the baby before and just after birth produce essential fats in the brain during growth. Actually, researchers think the fetus may be making its own ketones. Possibly being the reason ketosis is so common during the third trimester.

Related reading: “Ketonuria in Pregnancy—With Special Reference to Calorie-restricted Food Intake in Obese Diabetics“

The metabolism of pregnant women changes to a catabolic state in late-stage pregnancy. The catabolic state is one of molecular breakdown, meaning ketosis is happening more frequently. Remember food aversions and nausea that many pregnant women experience alone will reduce the amount of food consumed, more easily entering ketosis.

Related reading: “What is a Catabolic State?“

Pregnancy with low-carbs

A low-carb diet is fine during pregnancy so long as enough nutrition is consumed. A balance of ketones and glucose is key for the fetus to grow. The important thing is to ensure normal blood sugar levels and the consumption of enough calories.

Thing to consider

We know ketosis is safe and natural when done correctly. A woman goes through a lot of changes and there are extra things to consider during pregnancy. Regardless of being in ketosis or not, there are a few things to keep in mind:

Now is not the time for weight loss – The keto diet is a very effective way to lose weight. For most women, losing weight during pregnancy isn’t a good idea. It’s important to consume enough calories regardless of your diet. Proper nutrition is vital.

Eat whole foods – Proper nutrition is especially important for your growing baby. There are some foods with higher carbohydrates that are important to include in the pregnancy diet: fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts, legumes, occasionally dairy products.

Avoid added sugar, processed foods, and refined grains – Carbohydrate quality is important because it relates to nutrient-dense foods for both the mother and the growing baby.

Don’t fast intermittently – Even though there are a lot of benefits to intermittent fasting it’s not a good idea while pregnant. It’s more important to pay attention to your hunger cues and consume enough nutrition for growth.

In summary

It’s necessary to consider your diet during your pregnancy, don’t let fear-mongering and ignorance make you think the keto diet is harmful to pregnancy. Especially when you compare it to the diet most people are earring.