Ketosis FAQs / Is ketosis dangerous?
No, it is not. Ketoacidosis, not ketosis, is the dangerous condition you may have heard or been told about – many confuse the two, even practitioners!
In normal individuals,
Ketosis FAQs / Is ketosis dangerous?
No, it is not. Ketoacidosis, not ketosis, is the dangerous condition you may have heard or been told about – many confuse the two, even practitioners!
In normal individuals, there is a constant production of ketone bodies by the liver. The concentration of ketone bodies in blood is maintained around 1 mg/dl. Their excretion in urine is very low and undetectable by routine urine tests.
When the rate of synthesis of ketone bodies exceeds the rate of utilization, their concentration in blood increases; this is known as ketonemia. This is followed by ketonuria – excretion of ketone bodies in urine. The overall picture of ketonemia and ketonuria is commonly referred as ketosis. Smell of acetone in breath is a common feature in ketosis.
When a type 1 diabetic suffers a biological stress event (sepsis, heart attack, infection) or fails to administer enough insulin they may suffer the pathological condition ketoacidosis. Liver cells increase metabolism of fatty acids into ketones and glucose via glycogenolysis in an attempt to supply energy to peripheral cells which are unable to transport glucose in the absence of insulin. The resulting very high levels of blood glucose and ketone bodies lower the pH of the blood and trigger the kidneys to attempt to excrete the glucose and ketones. Osmotic diuresis of glucose will cause further removal of water and electrolytes from the blood resulting in potentially fatal dehydration, tachycardia and hypotension.
Individuals who follow a low-carbohydrate diet will also develop ketosis, sometimes called nutritional ketosis, but the level of ketone body concentrations are on the order of 0.5-5 mM whereas the pathological ketoacidosis is 15-25 mM.
As the mainstream diet is so high in carbohydrate that ketosis is rarely seen without starvation or ketoacidosis, many practitioners mistake well regulated nutritional ketosis for pathological ketoacidosis.
Posted in: Understanding Ketosis