Question

2. Your friend has just started a ketogenic diet and eats mostly fats. You eat a fairly normal diet that consists of about 50% carbohydrates. Using your knowledge of the Krebs cycle, explain the difference between how you and your friend are producing energy. (Hint: Be sure to mention ketone bodies.)

1. Ketogenic diets limit the amount of carbohydrates you consume. Based on what you’ve learned in this course, how might a diet like this theoretically affect blood glucose levels?

Answer 1

The Ketogenic diet is a very low-carb and high fat diet.

In a ketogenic diet, the main source of energy are the ketone bodies, which serves as an alternative form of energy for the body.

The body constantly produces small amounts of ketone bodies which can make 22 ATP and is regulated mainly by insulin.

This diet would reduce carbohydrate intake and replaces it with fat.This reduction would lead to a metabolic state called ketosis.

Ketosis refers to the process of using fat instead of sugar for energy.

When the cell needs fuel, it will put the ketone bodies from the blood,turn them back to acetyl CoA and send them through the krebs cycle where they come out as ATP .

The intake of normal diet would break the carbohydrate in the food into another type of sugar called glucose.

The stomach and small intestine absorb the glucose and releases it into blood .Then the glucose can be used for energy.

The body uses insulin to bring glucose from blood into cells for energy.

The Ketogenic diet would decrease the blood glucose levels.

This diet helps to reduce the body's demand for insulin which is a benefit for people with type 1 and 2 diabetes.

This would show improvements in glycemic control and medication reduction.