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Ketogenic Diet Favorably Affects Biomarkers for CVD
Very
low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet are
popular yet little is known regarding the effects on serum biomarkers
for cardiovascular disease (CVD).
This
study examined the effects of a 6-wk ketogenic diet on fasting and
postprandial serum biomarkers in 20 normal-weight, normolipidemic men.
Twelve men switched from their habitual diet (17% protein, 47%
carbohydrate and 32% fat) to a ketogenic diet (30% protein, 8%
carbohydrate and 61% fat) and eight control subjects consumed their
habitual diet for 6 wk. Fasting blood lipids, insulin, LDL particle
size, oxidized LDL and postprandial triacylglycerol (TAG) and insulin
responses to a fat-rich meal were determined before and after
treatment.
There
were significant decreases in fasting serum TAG (-33%), postprandial
lipemia after a fat-rich meal (-29%), and fasting serum insulin
concentrations (-34%) after men consumed the ketogenic diet. Fasting
serum total and LDL cholesterol and oxidized LDL were unaffected and
HDL cholesterol tended to increase with the ketogenic diet (+11.5%; P
= 0.066).
In
subjects with a predominance of small LDL particles pattern B, there
were significant increases in mean and peak LDL particle diameter and
the percentage of LDL-1 after the ketogenic diet
There
were no significant changes in blood lipids in the control group. To
our knowledge this is the first study to document the effects of a
ketogenic diet ketogenic diet on fasting and postprandial CVD
biomarkers independent of weight loss.
The
results suggest that a short-term ketogenic diet does not have a
deleterious effect on CVD risk profile and may improve the lipid
disorders characteristic of atherogenic dyslipidemia. J
Nutr; VOL. 132;
2002 Jul; PP. 1879-85
