How Does Apple Cider Vinegar Complement the Keto Diet?
The Data-Driven Reasons to Drink Apple Cider Vinegar
Helps to Maintain a Desirable Weight
Helps to Combat Diabetes and Heart Disease
Can Kill Harmful Bacteria
Is Popular for Hair and Skin Health
Contains Some Antioxidants, Amino Acids, Vitamins, and Minerals
Keeping Context
For Science...
If you arestarting your journey on the keto diet, or even if you have been on the pathway for a while, you may have heard about apple cider vinegar (ACV). People are raving about how it helps with ketosis and many other health benefits that it brings to the table. Some even claim that it was used as a medicine of sorts in ancient times. Either way, its current popularity dictates that we examine this wonder liquid and explore the science behind the reasons to drink it.
In this article, we will cover:
What is apple cider vinegar?
How does apple cider vinegar complement the keto diet?
Five scientific reasons to drink apple cider vinegar
What Actually Is Apple Cider Vinegar?
Simply put, apple cider vinegar, or ACV, is vinegar that is the product of fermented apples. You can buy it pre-made, or you can even make it yourself at home. Not only is making it a fairly straightforward process, but it is affordable as well. You will need to let it sit for a few months, but it literally takes five minutes to prepare it. Because ACV beautifully complements the keto diet, it’s a good idea to have it on hand.
Making it yourself
You can learn how to make your own apple cider vinegar. Even though it is tedious and takes some time it can be done.
You will need a few organic apples, a jar, sugar, a paper towel or cloth, and a rubber band.
Wash and cut the apples into medium-sized slices, and put them in the jar.
Mix a cup of water with three teaspoons of sugar (preferably raw sugar oralternative sweeteners); make sure that the apples are covered by this mixture.
Put the paper towel or cloth in the jar. Snap the rubber band into place.
Keep the mixture in a dark place at room temperature for two to three weeks.
Remove the apples and throw them away.
Put the mixture, without the apple slices, back into the same dark place for four to six weeks.
Every few days, stir the mixture. It will be ready for you to use in about four weeks.
Check the mixture, and when you are happy with it, it’s ready.
The hardest part is waiting for the fermentation process to complete, and the timing will vary depending on the time of the year. You will know when it is ready because you will see cloudy foam formed through the center. This is the part that contains the good bacteria, enzymes, acetic acid, and yeast, and it is called the mother.
How Does Apple Cider Vinegar Complement the Keto Diet?
First of all, it contains acetic acid, which is the result of the fermentation process converting the sugars in apple cider to alcohol and then into vinegar. Acetic acid has been said to assist in reducing inflammation, lowering blood pressure, and counteracting potential spikes in blood sugar.
All of this is similar to what happens when you achieve ketosis, and the best part is that if you slip up and indulge in a meal that is rich in carbs, apple cider vinegar can help to minimize the downfalls.
In addition, it can help to reduce cravings for sugar. When you start on the keto diet, your goal is to condition your body to obtain its energy from burning fat as opposed to converting glucose from food into energy. In the beginning, as your body is adjusting to the change, you might crave carbs or sugars. This is a natural response of the body when it is looking for more energy. Apple cider vinegar helps to regulate levels of sugar in the blood, and this helps to cut those cravings down.
The Data Driven Reasons to Drink Apple Cider Vinegar
There are several reasons to drink apple cider vinegar. ACV is a wonderful supplement to any diet, but remember that it is a supplement. No matter how many great benefits it can provide, always discuss your wellness plan with your doctor. Unless you take an excessive amount and over the recommended dose APC can not harm you.An easy way to take APC is in capsule / pill form.The primary reason to take it in capsules is strictly for convenience. It is the same formula you'd get in the liquid form and they are easier to take.
Without further ado here are this list of benefits you can get from ACV.
1.ACV Helps to Maintain a Desirable Weight
The Keto diet isn’t just about losing weight; it is also about making healthy choices so that your body works at its best. Weight loss is the end result, not the goal. Apple cider vinegar can help with this. First of all, drinking a spoonful of apple cider vinegar before a meal can help curb sugar cravings and reduce hunger. This makes it easier to stick to portion control.
In addition, acetic acid helps reduce fat. Studies have shown that when rats consume acetic acid, they had an increase in the fat-burning enzyme, AMPK. Not only that, but severely overweight rats actually lost belly and liver fat storage. These studies suggest that incorporating ACV into the diet will help people to reduce fat in their bodies and maintain healthy weight levels.
2.ACV Helps to Combat Diabetes and Heart Disease
Diabetes is a condition where the level of sugar in the blood is too high. This happens when the body isn’t producing enough insulin to send the sugar to the cells that need to convert it to energy. The reality is that higher levels of sugar in your blood is not good for anyone. If you are on the keto diet and have been in ketosis, a carb indulgence can cause your body to switch gears. The automatic response to sugars is to produce insulin and revert back to using the glucose for energy.
Apple cider vinegar can help with this because it is known to contain enzymes that aid in lowering the blood sugar. In turn, reducing blood sugar levels helps to maintain lower blood pressure because the blood doesn’t contain excess sugars, so the heart doesn’t have to work as hard to send the blood through the body. Maintaining appropriate blood sugar levels is critical to staying healthy, and apple cider vinegar assists with this.
Around 25% of the deaths in the United States are a result of heart disease. Several studies show that the acetic acid in ACV aids in lowering blood pressure, bad cholesterol levels, and excess lipids in the blood.
3.ACV Can Kill Harmful Bacteria
Although antibiotics are out there for the treatment of bacterial infections, antibiotic resistance is fast becoming a significant concern. For years now, people have overused and misused antibiotics, and the result is that some bacteria are becoming resistant. Scientists are always investigating how we can get rid of harmful bacteria, and apple cider vinegar is proving itself to be a possible solution.
One way that this is true is that apple cider vinegar can destroy the biofilms used by bacteria to attach to a surface in the body. By doing so, ACV effectively prevents the bacteria from being able to infect the person again and again.
4.ACV Is Popular for Hair and Skin Health
People love to use apple cider vinegar as an astringent because it is natural and has incredible antimicrobial properties for cleaning your skin. It can help to restore and maintain proper pH levels for your skin and head. In addition, people add it to their shampoos and conditioners to level out the pH and prevent static or frizz.
5.ACV Contains Some Antioxidants, Amino Acids, Vitamins, and Minerals
When apple cider vinegar is organic and unfiltered, the foamy center, called the mother, has proteins, good bacteria, and enzymes that provide benefits to people. One tablespoon of ACV has nine milligrams of potassium, no calories, and no carbohydrates. In addition, it has good bacteria and enzymes that help to fight against yeast infections caused by Candida by keeping the growth to a minimum. It also has B vitamins and vitamin C, as well as small amounts of calcium and magnesium. When you add a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar before each meal, you are giving your body nutrients that will improve your health.
Keeping Context
Apple cider vinegar is widely popular, and there are many claims as to what it can do. Studies do show that it is good for you, and scientists are actively working to learn more. ACV is a remedy that has been around for many centuries, and continues to be used today. It should never be used as a replacement for medical care or the advice of a doctor, but it can enhance your health and your desire to live a healthy lifestyle.
The keto diet also brings great benefits to people, as it reprograms the body to burn energy from unnecessary fat rather than from glucose. People who live the keto lifestyle cut carbs out of their diets as much as possible.
In the case of a slip up or a carbohydrate indulgence, apple cider vinegar can help by reducing blood sugar levels and slowing the body’s insulin response. This helps you to get back on track more quickly. In addition, ACV can help reduce sugar cravings, which will make it easier to stick to the diet. Apple cider vinegar complements the keto diet and brings many health benefits to the table.
