Perhaps the biggest diet craze right now is the high-fat ketogenic diet.

Having reportedly been used by celebs such as Kim Kardashian and basketball player Lebron James, it is no wonder that it has taken the world by storm.

So, just how does the ketogenic diet work?

The diet is based on the process called ketosis. This process is what happens when your body is so starved of carbs that it converts the fat in your body into fatty acids and ketone bodies, which are then used as an alternative source of energy.

What do you need to eat for your body to reach ketosis?

In order for your body to reach the state of ketosis, 80 to 90 percent of the calories you take in need to come from fat, according to womenshealthmag.com. The remaining percentage should come from a combination of carbs and proteins.

Your carbohydrate intake is reduced to 10 to 35 grams per day. But don’t get too excited. That is the same amount of carbs that you would find in an apple or a glass of milk. This means you need to almost entirely cut out fruit and instead eat high-fat meats such as beef, hot dogs and bacon.

Certain vegetables are also okay in moderation, as is high-fat dairy cheese.

Will the ketogenic diet help you to lose weight?

The point of ketosis is that you lose weight because your body fat is burned off as energy instead of your regular intake of carbs. But studies suggest that it is the elimination of carbohydrates alone that is responsible for the weight loss.

Limiting carbs also means that any water weight falls off very fast. Carbs hold three times their weight in water in your body so if you cancel out the carbs you’re losing all that extra water as well.

Is it safe?

In a nutshell, no.

Studies have shown that most people can tolerate a moderate state of ketosis but that the side effects are usually too bad for people to maintain it.

Aside from weakness and fatigue, people whose bodies are going through ketosis usually suffer from terrible BO and bad breath. We think we’ll be giving this one a miss, that’s for sure!

And if that wasn’t enough to turn you off the diet, it can reportedly have some extreme long-term damage. Certain reports have stated that ketosis is dangerous for your liver and can lead to lots of medical illnesses such as kidney stones, headaches, menstrual irregularities, dehydration, and many more.

So overall, it is not advised. It may be tempting if you want to lose a few pounds fast, but the health risks are not worth it. And besides, we’d definitely trade being smelly for an extra pound or two!