Behind Diets With A Low Carbohydrate Content

The physical benefits of diets with a low carbohydrate content are quite well known among those who are interested in nutrition and weight loss. But do you know how they affect you on a cognitive and emotional level? Are they really durable in the long run?

The body can actually get glucose from any macronutrient: Carbohydrates, fats or proteins. When it does not use carbohydrates, the efficiency it does with is much lower, and this can have negative consequences for brain function. 

Diets with a low carbohydrate content

Diets with a low carbohydrate content refer to diets in which a person gets less than 30% of their total energy from foods rich in carbohydrates. In recent years, they have become the most widely used nutritional strategy for losing body fat.

The reason for its widespread use against obesity lies in the importance of the role of carbohydrates in the accumulation of body fat. But there are other solutions that, instead of banning them, seek to moderate intake and adjust their glycemic index.

Diets with a low carbohydrate content and intellectual performance

Although the human brain represents only 2% of the body’s total weight, it uses 20-30% of the energy you consume daily. Thus, it is a very demanding body that, due to its greater energy efficiency, uses carbohydrates as its primary energy source.

For this reason, several studies have concluded that diets low in carbohydrates adversely affect the performance of cognitive tasks related to learning, concentration, and memory. However, it seems that this is only happening in the short term. Nevertheless, it is true that not many people can follow the diets for long periods of time.

When it becomes a lifestyle in the long run to stop eating carbohydrates, it seems that there are several adjustments that make the energy production from amino acids, the structural unit of proteins and fatty acids more efficient. Thus, most long-term studies have not seen impaired cognitive function.

When we talk about people with pre-existing cognitive impairment, it seems that diets with a low carbohydrate content can be beneficial. This is because Alzheimer’s patients lose their ability to use glucose as an energy source, making the cognitive damage even greater.

But at least during the early stages of the disease, the patient’s brain can use ketone bodies for energy, substances derived from mobilization, and the breakdown of fatty acids.

Thus, a low-carbohydrate diet appears to improve cognitive function in those with mild impairment. The results of a preliminary clinical study, published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease  in April 2019, show this. However, these diets are difficult to maintain over time.

What happens on an emotional level?

In this case, the opposite happens. Diets with a low carbohydrate content do not negatively affect the emotional state in the short term, but in the long term. This results in reduced serotonin levels in the brain.

This can lead to reduced energy levels, sugar cravings, feelings of sadness or even depression. 

Adherence to low carbohydrate diets

In conclusion, it is important to note that many people have difficulty adhering to a low carbohydrate diet. This is due to several different reasons:

1. The lack of carbohydrate intake goes against the established social patterns. In Western culture, cereals, fruits and vegetables are staple foods. Therefore, it can be difficult not to eat them and it can make one’s diet fail. Food has a social function in people, which diets with a low carbohydrate content often can not meet.

2. When carbohydrate intake is restricted, the food available is also restricted. These diets are so restrictive that they often cause people to fall into monotonous and unsustainable eating habits.

3. As you have seen in this article, diets with a low carbohydrate content can affect your mood. People also sometimes need food to regulate their emotions and this is impossible with this type of diet.

Thus, it seems that these diets are not healthy alternatives, except in exceptional cases. They reduce the short-term intellectual performance, have a negative effect on the emotional state and are difficult to adhere to.

Therefore, it is a good idea to stay away from restrictive diets and eat healthy. Also keep in mind that the best diet is one that you can easily follow no matter what benefits you want to achieve.