A ketogenic diet has been used for therapeutic reasons for over 60 years and those people on long term ketogenic diets have not suffered ill effects.

I believe the confusion lies with those who do not understand the difference between ketosis, a process whereby the body metabolizes fats into ketones (which are used as energy) and keto-acidosis which is a condition that afflicts type 1 diabetics and alcoholics where an impaired or absent insulin response results in ketones and an excess of glucose in the bloodstream.

More confusion stems from those who equate a ketogenic diet as one being high in protein... a ketogenic diet replaces carbohydrates with fats (which do not have to be animal based) and limits protein as excessive protein can trigger glyconeogenesis which is a process where the body converts protein to glycogen in the absence of other fuels.

The increased consumption of processed foods and sugars, namely fructose, has increased the rates of diabetes and things like fatty liver disease among non alcoholics... fructose is metabolized by the liver and turned into fat and it gets put in way too many foods. Look at a cereal box these days and you will find that most have added fructose and many foods that don't need sugar have it added anyways because it is the hook that keeps you eating and buying more of whatever it is.

The consumption of fructose has soared in the past 4 decades and most of that comes in soft drinks and processed foods as it is a cheap sugar substitute when it is made from corn.

Soy consumption has also increased as it is added to many products... it is a powerful endocrine disruptor and can inhibit the absorption of nutrients in other foods. Those who have issues with estrogen levels need to limit and avoid products with soy as it disrupts this even further.

When I had my last series of blood / urine tests they ticked all the boxes as I wanted to get as much information as possible... my liver and kidneys are fine and I do not suffer from gout either.

Because we include organ meats in our diet (liver and heart) this provides essential vitamins and my neurologist remarked on what were exceptional B12 levels...I told him what my diet was and he had no objections as it is a diet that is also anti-inflammatory.

Grains can cause serious issues for celiacs but also cause lesser issues for those who do not have this diagnosis... I limit my grains to oatmeal and every once in a while I have some brown rice.

Wheat pasta now upsets my stomach and I used to be quite the pasta loving fiend... by removing it from my diet I have lost the tolerance I had for it.

When you live with someone who has no thyroid and cannot eat wheat / gluten because of celiac disease, and has experienced women's health issues where increased estrogen levels have caused further complications you get to see firsthand how what you eat can have serious effects on one's health.

Despite that my wife is still healthier than most of the people walking around as she has never had any vices, exercises, and really has to watch everything she eats.

If we look at heart disease, the rates have dropped since the 1960's and people like to cite this as a success but the rates are still considerably higher than they were in 1900. Some attribute this to people being more sedentary but you can be sedentary and not be overweight... if you are sedentary and fill your gob with crap you are going to have issues.

Exercise helps but it is not required for weight loss... it does not contribute as much as people think.