Dukan Diet vs Keto Diet
Low-carb, high-protein diets like the Dukan diet and the ketogenic diet have gained a lot of attention in recent years to shed pounds.
Carbohydrate restriction forces the body to burn fat reserves for energy, which is the basis of all three diets.
However, they do, differ in a few areas. Read on to learn about the similarities and differences between the Dukan and the ketogenic diets.
What Is The Dukan Diet?
The Dukan diet is a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet designed by French doctor Pierre Dukan in the 1970s to help overweight people lose weight.
The diet has four phases, each of which has a particular set of foods that you can consume.
The number of foods allowed in the first two has a limit of 100. The next two allow you to consume foods that help you wean yourself off the diet plan.
Essentially, weaning aims to guarantee that you maintain the weight achieved after going through the plan. The four phases of the Dukan diet are Attack, Cruise, Consolidation, and Stabilization.
For 1 to 10 days, you should consume as much lean protein as you can stand while consuming 1.5 tablespoons of oat bran and 6 cups of water each day during the Attack phase.
In the Cruise phase, which can last many months, you add unlimited servings of non-starchy veggies every other day and then a further half-tablespoon of oat bran.
A portion of hard cheese and two pieces of whole-grain bread can be included in your daily diet when you reach the Consolidation stage, which lasts for five days for every pound lost.
Eat up to 2 portions of starchy foods and as many celebration meals as you would like during this time.
Maintenance focuses on the fourth and last phase, Stabilization, which is a continual process.
Except for one day a week when you implement the Attack phase’s all-protein guidelines, you can eat whatever you want throughout this phase.
You also take 3 tbsp of oat bran and work out 20 minutes daily in this period.
Foods to Eat and Avoid On a Dukan Diet
The following are the foods allowed and disallowed on a Dukan diet.
Foods Allowed On The Dukan Diet | Foods To Avoid On The Dukan Diet |
---|---|
Artificial sweeteners | Alcohol |
Beets | Avocados |
Carrots | Bacon And Other Processed Or Baked Meats |
Diet gelatin | Bread |
Fish and shellfish | Butter |
Green beans | Cheese |
Kidney | Fried Foods |
Leafy greens | Fruit |
Lemon juice | Legumes |
Liver | Non-Skim Dairy |
Non-fat cottage cheese | Nuts |
Non-fat milk | Pasta |
Non-fat ricotta (in limited amounts) | Potatoes |
Non-fat yogurt | Rice |
Oat bran | Salad Dressing, Mayonnaise |
Olive oil | Sugar |
Onions | Sweetened Condiments |
Eggs | |
Pickles | |
Pumpkin | |
Seitan | |
Shirataki noodles | |
Skinless poultry | |
Spaghetti squash | |
Tempeh | |
Tofu | |
Tomatoes | |
Tongue | |
Turnips |
Pros and Cons of the Dukan Diet
Pros
The following are the benefits of following a Dukan diet
- Allows you to eat all you can of the allowed foods
- Foods are satiating
- Helps with rapid weight loss
- It comes in four phases that help with weight maintenance
Cons
- The diet is restrictive, especially in the first two phases
- Restricting certain foods causes a nutrient deficiency
- Not an ideal diet for people with cardiovascular and kidney problems
- The use of high protein foods may affect the environment negatively
- It does not meet the USDA dietary guidelines
What is The Keto Diet?
Essentially, a ketogenic diet is an eating plan that emphasizes meals that include a high concentration of heart-healthy fats, appropriate protein, and minimal carbohydrates.
The objective is to consume more calories from fat than from carbohydrates.
For the diet to work, the body depletes its sugar levels. It then begins to break down fat to produce energy.
When you consume significantly fewer carbohydrates, your body begins to use fat as fuel, which has the potential to send your body into a metabolic state known as ketosis.
When you are in the ketosis state, your liver converts fat into little energy molecules known as ketones that the brain and other organs can use to generate energy.
List of Keto-Friendly and Non-Friendly Foods
The following are the foods allowed and disallowed on a keto diet.
Foods Allowed on a Keto Diet | Foods to Avoid on a Keto Diet |
---|---|
Avocados | Baked goods |
Berries | Chips |
Cheese | Crackers |
Dark chocolate and cocoa powder | Gluten-free baked goods |
Eggs | Grains |
Fish and seafood | High-sugar fruits |
Healthful oils | Honey |
Low-carb veggies | Juices |
Nuts and seeds | Starchy vegetables |
Plain Greek yogurt and cottage cheese | Sugar in any form |
Poultry | Sweetened yogurt |
Unsweetened coffee and tea | Syrup |
Pros and Cons of the Keto Diet
The keto diet, like many others, also has its advantages and drawbacks.
Pros
- Athletic performance improves with the diet
- It can help you lose abdominal fat
- Increases the feeling of fullness
- It helps you lose weight quickly.
- Lowers health markers such as blood pressure, triglyceride, and cholesterol levels
- There are numerous internet resources and recipes
Cons
- Because of the limited variety of food options, it isn’t easy to sustain
- In the first phases, there may be some side effects
- Dietary deficits may occur
- Not ideal for pregnant women or anyone with risk factors for health problems, and certain medical disorders should
- The most nutritious form of a diet can be too pricey and inaccessible
Dukan Diet Vs. Keto: What Makes Them Similar Yet So Different?
Both the Dukan and keto diets are low-carb diets that significantly emphasize fat and protein consumption. However, the Dukan diet only promotes low carbs in the first two phases.
The Keto diet promotes high-fat foods, while the Dukan advocates for low-fat foods. The keto diet is a moderate protein, while the Dukan diet is high protein.
Regarding weight loss, the keto diet takes the cup for sustainability, while the Dukan diet only provides rapid results in the first two phases.
Final Thoughts
Tens of millions of people happily follow the Standard American Diet, but it does not work for them. Therefore, they chose other diet plans to help achieve their goals.
Dukan and keto diets are popular eating plans with people who do not want high amounts of calories in their meals.
Both diets are good for weight loss, and both advocate for deriving calories from proteins and fats.
Though they have a few differences, your choice between the two will depend on what works well for your needs.
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