The Ketogenic Diet in Obesity Management: Friend or Foe?

Obesity and overweight. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/obesity-and-overweight

Tremmel, M., Gerdtham, U. G., Nilsson, P. M., & Saha, S. (2017). Economic burden of obesity: A systematic literature review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 14, 435. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph14040435

Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Neha, Chaudhary, R. (2024). Ketogenic diet as a treatment and prevention strategy for cancer: A therapeutic alternative. Nutrition (Burbank, Los Angeles County, Calif.), 124, 112427. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nut.2024.112427

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Bachar, A., & Birk, R. (2025). Ketogenic diet intervention for obesity Weight-Loss- A narrative review, challenges, and open questions. Curr Nutr Rep, 14, 43. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13668-025-00634-3

Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Masood, W., Annamaraju, P., Khan Suheb, M. Z., & Uppaluri, K. R. (2025). Ketogenic diet. In: StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing.

WILDER, R. (1921). The effects of ketonemia on the course of epilepsy. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 2, 307–308.

Google Scholar 

Choy, K. Y. C., & Louie, J. C. Y. (2023). The effects of the ketogenic diet for the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus: A systematic review and meta-analysis of recent studies. Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research & Reviews, 17, 102905. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsx.2023.102905

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Muscogiuri, G., Barrea, L., Laudisio, D., Pugliese, G., Salzano, C., Savastano, S., & Colao, A. (2019). The management of very low-calorie ketogenic diet in obesity outpatient clinic: A practical guide. J Transl Med, 17, 356. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12967-019-2104-z

Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Sjödin, A., Hellström, F., Sehlstedt, E., Svensson, M., & Burén, J. (2020). Effects of a ketogenic diet on muscle fatigue in healthy, young, Normal-Weight women: A randomized controlled feeding trial. Nutrients, 12, 955. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12040955

Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Dyńka, D., Rodzeń, Ł., Rodzeń, M., Pacholak-Klimas, A., Ede, G., Sethi, S., Łojko, D., Bartoń, K., Berry, K., Deptuła, A., Grzywacz, Ż., Martin, P., Unwin, J., & Unwin, D. (2025). Ketogenic diets for body weight loss: A comparison with other diets. Nutrients, 17, 965. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17060965

Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Landry, M. J., Crimarco, A., Perelman, D., Durand, L. R., Petlura, C., Aronica, L., Robinson, J. L., Kim, S. H., & Gardner, C. D. (2021). Adherence to ketogenic and mediterranean study diets in a crossover trial: The Keto–Med randomized trial. Nutrients, 13, 967. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13030967

Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Lane, J., & Fontaine, K. R. (2021). Ketogenic diet and health. OBM Integrative and Complementary Medicine, 6, 1–42. https://doi.org/10.21926/obm.icm.2102015

Article  Google Scholar 

The ketogenic diet in epilepsy (1925). Journal of the American Medical Association 84, 1979–1983 https://doi.org/10.1001/JAMA.1925.02660520007003.

Article  Google Scholar 

Ko, A., Kwon, H. E., & Kim, H. D. (2022). Updates on the ketogenic diet therapy for pediatric epilepsy. Biomedical Journal, 45, 19–26. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bj.2021.11.003

Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Kwon, H. E., & Kim, H. D. (2021). Recent aspects of ketogenic diet in neurological disorders. Acta Epileptologica, 3, 21. https://doi.org/10.1186/s42494-021-00053-1

Article  Google Scholar 

Dowis, K., & Banga, S. (2021). The potential health benefits of the ketogenic diet: A narrative review. Nutrients, 13, 1654. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13051654

Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Firman, C. H., Mellor, D. D., Unwin, D., & Brown, A. (2024). Does a ketogenic diet have a place within diabetes clinical practice?? Review of current evidence and controversies. Diabetes Ther, 15, 77–97. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13300-023-01492-4

Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Paoli, A., Bianco, A., Moro, T., Mota, J. F., & Coelho-Ravagnani, C. F. (2023). The effects of ketogenic diet on insulin sensitivity and weight loss, which came first: The chicken or the egg?? Nutrients. 15, 3120 https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15143120

Sethi, S., Wakeham, D., Ketter, T., Hooshmand, F., Bjornstad, J., Richards, B., Westman, E., Krauss, R. M., & Saslow, L. (2024). Ketogenic diet intervention on metabolic and psychiatric health in bipolar and schizophrenia: A pilot trial. Psychiatry Research, 335, 115866. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2024.115866

Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Haridas, B., Testino, A., & Kossoff, E. H. (2025). Ketogenic diet therapy for the treatment of pediatric epilepsy. Epileptic Disorders : International Epilepsy Journal with Videotape, 27, 144–155. https://doi.org/10.1002/epd2.20320

Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Ruiz Herrero, J., Cañedo Villarroya, E., González Gutiérrez-Solana, L., García Alcolea, B., Gómez Fernández, B., Macfarland, P., & Pedrón-Giner, L. A. (2021). Classic ketogenic diet and modified Atkins diet in SLC2A1 positive and negative patients with suspected GLUT1 deficiency syndrome: A single center analysis of 18 cases. Nutrients, 13, 840. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13030840

Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Barrea, L., Verde, L., Vetrani, C., Marino, F., Aprano, S., Savastano, S., Colao, A., & Muscogiuri, G. (2022). VLCKD: A real time safety study in obesity. J Transl Med, 20, 23. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12967-021-03221-6

Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Balestra, F., Luca, M. D., Panzetta, G., Palieri, R., Shahini, E., Giannelli, G., Pergola, G. D., & Scavo, M. P. (2025). Advancing obesity management: The very Low-Energy ketogenic Therapy (VLEKT) as an evolution of The traditional ketogenic diet. Curr Obes Rep, 14, 30. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13679-025-00622-2

Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Aronica, L., Volek, J., Poff, A., & D’agostino, D. P. (2021). Genetic variants for personalised management of very low carbohydrate ketogenic diets. BMJNPH, 3. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjnph-2020-000167

Zhang, D., Wei, Y., Huang, Q., Chen, Y., Zeng, K., Yang, W., Chen, J., & Chen, J. (2022). Important Hormones Regulating Lipid Metabolism Molecules 27, 7052 https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27207052.

Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Li, Y., Liu, Q., Jia, Z., & Guo, B. (2025). Ketone bodies in exercise, health and disease: Metabolic mechanisms, pathophysiology, and therapeutic implications. Advanced Exercise and Health Science, 2, 83–93. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aehs.2025.05.004

Article  Google Scholar 

Newman, J. C., & Verdin, E. (2014). Ketone bodies as signaling metabolites. Trends in Endocrinology and Metabolism, 25, 42–52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tem.2013.09.002

Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Stefanski, J. (2018). Ketosis and ketoacidosis: They May be sisters, but they’re certainly not twins. AADE in Practice, 6, 18–21. https://doi.org/10.1177/2325160318798640

Article  Google Scholar 

Moiz, A., Filion, K. B., Tsoukas, M. A., Yu, O. H. Y., Peters, T. M., & Eisenberg, M. J. (2025). Mechanisms of GLP-1 receptor Agonist-Induced weight loss: A review of central and peripheral pathways in appetite and energy regulation. The American Journal of Medicine, 138, 934–940. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2025.01.021

Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Bajka, B. H., Pinto, A. M., Perez-Moral, N., Saha, S., Ryden, P., Ahn-Jarvis, J., van der Schoot, A., Bland, C., Berry, S. E., Ellis, P. R., & Edwards, C. H. (2023). Enhanced secretion of satiety-promoting gut hormones in healthy humans after consumption of white bread enriched with cellular Chickpea flour: A randomized crossover study. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 117, 477–489. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajcnut.2022.12.008

Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Steinert, R. E., Feinle-Bisset, C., Asarian, L., Horowitz, M., Beglinger, C., & Geary, N. (2017). Ghrelin, CCK, GLP-1, and PYY(3–36): Secretory controls and physiological roles in eating and glycemia in health, obesity, and after RYGB. Physiological Reviews, 97, 411–463. https://doi.org/10.1152/physrev.00031.2014

Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Asgari, R., Caceres-Valdiviezo, M., Wu, S., Hamel, L., Humber, B. E., Agarwal, S. M., Fletcher, P. J., Fulton, S., Hahn, M. K., & Pereira, S. (2025). Regulation of energy balance by leptin as an adiposity signal and modulator of the reward system. Molecular Metabolism, 91, 102078. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molmet.2024.102078

Article  CAS 

Comments (0)

No login
gif