Low carb diet: Things you should know

The Low carb diet is actually the abbreviated form of low carbohydrate diet. Low carb diet, as you can guess from the name, is low in carbohydrates. It limits the amount of carbohydrates you take per day and emphasizes on fat and protein intake. Such diet sometimes promotes ketosis and is therefore labeled as ketogenic diet. Ketosis promoting low carb diet also generates an induction phase similar to the one caused due to the preparation & intake of various Atkins recipes.
 
Low carb diet: The benefits
 
The low carb diet or low carb foods have many benefits. Some of the benefits of such diet may be listed below:
 

• Such diet helps you to lose weight
• Such diet controls the blood glucose levels of diabetics as well as pre-diabetics
• Such diet improves the sensitivity of your body cells to the hormone insulin
• Low carb diet lowers high blood pressure.
• Such diet increases the amount of good cholesterol in your body.
• Such diet keeps your triglyceride levels in check
• Such diet is highly beneficial to treat chronic fatigue syndrome, seizures and PCOS/ polycystic ovarian syndrome.

 
Low carb diet: What foods to eat?
 
While you are on low carb diet, your low carb meals, snacks & breakfast should contain an optimum portion of the following things:
 

• Dairy products: This section includes food items like butter, cream cheese, cottage cheese, hard cheese, soft cheese, full-fat cheese etc.
• Vegetables: You can consume plenty of vegetables when you are on such diet. Vegetables in cooked form or as salads are allowed. The vegetables you should consume are celery, cabbage, pumpkin, mushrooms, asparagus, eggplant, onions, cucumbers, peppers, cauliflower and broccoli. Stay away from starchy vegetables such as corns, peas, potatoes, carrots and winter squash.
• Fruits: You are allowed to eat fruits that are low or medium in sugar content such as lemons, limes, cantaloupes, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries and strawberries.
• Grains & Nuts: You can eat dried nuts such as almonds, cashews, pistachios and walnuts. Complex carbohydrates are high in fiber. If you are on a moderately low carb diet, you can consume complex carbohydrates such as barley, brown rice, whole grain breads etc.
• Fats: You can consume Omega-3 fats & monounsaturated fat if you are on low carb diet. Oily fish like salmon, mackerel and oils like flax oil, olive oil can therefore be consumed. Trans-fats are strictly not allowed.

 
Low carb diet: Recipe for chicken lovers
 
Low carb chicken recipes are very popular because you can experiment a lot with chicken when you are on low carb diet. Here’s a delectable chicken recipe for you:
 

Pepped up chicken:

Ingredients: Boneless, skinless chicken breasts (4), Italian dressing (1 cup), packaged diced pepperoni (1 packet), provolone cheese (4 slices)

Method:

1. Put chicken and Italian dressing in to zip-top pouch and keep in fridge for an hour

2. Preheat oven to 175 degrees C.

3. Take the chicken out, remove marinade, put on a baking dish, layer with pepperoni, cover the dish with a silver foil and bake for 35 minutes

4. Now take the chicken out, put a provolone cheese slice on each chicken breast and bake until the cheese melts

5. Your pepped up chicken is ready.
 
So this is all you need to know about low carb diets.
 
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