BS, Dietetics and Nutrition
Contrary to popular belief, losing weight doesn’t require you to skip meals or eat less. An effective weight loss plan is about consuming types of food that contain the right nutrients in the right portions. This is the way to lose weight without putting your health at risk.
Following a keto diet is an excellent method to lose weight effectively. This eating plan focuses on food that contains healthy fat, moderate amounts of protein, and minimum carbohydrates. Aside from helping you lose weight, the keto diet can also improve heart health and cognitive functions.
If you’re planning to follow a keto diet to jumpstart your weight loss journey, learn how to make a keto coleslaw. This is a low-carb, creamy, colorful, and easy to prepare side dish, perfect for BBQs and high-fat meat dishes. You just need a few ingredients and spend no more than ten minutes to prepare this dish, and you’re good to go!
Aside from requiring simple and healthy ingredients, a keto coleslaw can also provide the following health benefits:
1. Packed With Nutrients
A keto coleslaw is known to have small amounts of carbohydrates, but this doesn’t mean that you can’t get any nutrients from this dish. Because of the ingredients used, a keto diet is actually packed with several nutrients, such as:
- Vitamin K: Consuming food rich in vitamin K can improve your heart and bone health, as well as your cognitive functions. On the other side of the coin, people who have vitamin K deficiency can have higher risks of developing gallbladder diseases and cystic fibrosis.
- Vitamin C: Vitamin C can relieve stress and treat common cough and flu. Regular intake of vitamin C can also prevent stroke and skin aging. Additionally, this nutrient can keep your immune system strong so you can easily fight germs and bacteria.
- Manganese: This nutrient can regulate blood sugar levels and lessen the risks of epileptic seizures. When coupled with other nutrients, manganese can gradually improve bone health and keep you safe from skeletal diseases, such as hip dysplasia, fractures, rickets, and osteoarthritis.
- Vitamin B6: Vitamin B6 is essential for you to maintain your mental health. This nutrient can improve your mood, lessen symptoms of anxiety and depression, and enhance overall brain health. It’ll be easier for you to manage stress and retain focus if your body receives sufficient amounts of vitamin B6.
- Calcium: Your heart, nerves, and muscles require regular doses of calcium. This nutrient can protect your body from cancer, diabetes, and high blood pressure.
- Potassium: Potassium can prevent cramps, regulate cognitive functions, and regulate your blood sugar. This nutrient can also boost metabolism, strengthen muscles, and improve cardiovascular functions.
- Magnesium: This nutrient can effectively treat migraine and premenstrual symptoms. Magnesium is also known to boost your exercise performance, allowing you to enjoy more benefits from your workouts.
2. Treats Inflammation
Inflammation isn’t always a cause for concern as this is your body’s way of protecting itself from injuries and infections. Inflammation is your body’s response in order to heal itself naturally, helping you get back on track after suffering from injuries and infections. However, excessive inflammation that occurs for a long period, without the presence of any injuries and infections can be alarming.
When left untreated, inflamed muscles and joints can cause pain and discomfort, and can even develop into osteoarthritis. Over time, inflammation can also lead to cardiovascular diseases, as it’ll be hard for oxygen and nutrients to circulate from and around your heart.
If you want to treat inflammation long-term, regularly eat a keto coleslaw. This dish contains cabbages, which contain high levels of antioxidants that can effectively reduce chronic inflammation.
3. Improves Digestion
Experiencing severe and recurring bloating, constipation, heartburn, and nausea isn’t only inconvenient; these can also become symptoms of a problematic or unhealthy digestive system. Leaving any digestive problems untreated can affect your body’s ability to pass food from the mouth to the anus, and its efficiency to absorb nutrients from the food you eat.
Eating a keto coleslaw is an easy way to improve digestion. The vegetables present in this dish are gut-friendly as these contain insoluble fibers. These types of fibers can improve how your digestive system works by regulating your bowel movements and adding bulk of stools.
Moreover, insoluble fibers also work by increasing the number of good bacteria in your gut. These bacteria are essential for the functions of your digestive system because these protect your immune system and produce important nutrients, such as vitamins B12 and K2.
4. Lowers Blood Pressure
It’s important to look after your blood pressure and ensure that it’s within the normal levels. High blood pressure or hypertension can trigger serious health conditions, such as heart attack, aneurysm, dementia, and narrowed blood vessels in the kidney.
Individuals diagnosed with high blood pressure are often advised to reduce their salt intake and increase their dietary potassium intake. Eating dishes high in salt can reduce your body’s ability to remove excess water from your kidneys, resulting in high blood pressure.
Potassium, on the other hand, contains electrolytes and several minerals to help the body function properly. Potassium can also regulate blood pressure as it counteracts the harmful effects of sodium from your body by excreting it through urine.
Keto coleslaw is a low-salt and high-potassium dish. Thus, by incorporating it regularly to your diet, you can easily maintain your blood pressure and ensure that you’re safe from the health risks associated with this health condition.
Talk To Pros
Before you fully commit to following a keto diet, consult your doctor first. Let them know about your plans to follow another eating plan and don’t proceed unless they approve of it. Following a keto diet and regularly eating a keto coleslaw can be beneficial to your health, but your body might respond differently.
By seeking professional advice, you can maximize the benefits of keto coleslaw and prevent any health risks in the long run. Your doctor can recommend the right ingredients for your coleslaw so you can meet your nutritional requirements.
