The human being race has been evolving for millions of years.
During our evolution, every human being has been producing its own ketones through its own organs.
In our case, it is ou liver organ that produces ketones naturally.
However, the vast majority of people among us have been producing this natural compound without even knowing it is really good for their health.
But the good news for you is that recent research has shown that intake of Ketones can help your body to be more efficient.
In other words, this means that the substance does help your body run more efficiently.
And for millions of years, our body has been restricted of ketones by the duration and quantity it took your liver to produce them.
Fortunately, there is nowadays an effective alternative to your liver producing ketones.
This has emerged in the form of dietary ketone supplements.
Beta-Hydroxybutyrate Salts are one of these ketone supplements.
Their aim is to raise the levels of ketone bodies to speed up the process of ketosis so that you gain all of the health benefits.
In this post, we discuss BHB Salts and see why they are the ultimate ketone supplement.
What is BHB?
Any human body has a variety of fuel sources to use.
Each of these fuel sources has its own benefits and downsides.
And it has been documented that the most efficient energy source for a human body is ketones. (1)
Out of the two ketone bodies used as fuel are Acetoacetate and BHB (Beta Hydroxybutyrate) (2).
What is important to know about these two ketones is that BHB provides the maximum energy for your body.
And at the same time, it offers a range of other benefits including:
- Optimizes the expression of health-promoting genes
- Reduces inflammation (low inflammation mean a lower potential for your body to contract cancers)
- Fights oxidative stress
- Increases longevity
- Enhances cognitive function
- Fights and prevents cancer
- Boosts insulin sensitivity
- Accelerates fat loss
- Enhances workout performance
- Prevents deterioration of bones
Note that your body will naturally produce Endogenous BHB through fasting or a low-carb diet.
There is another word that you can use to describe Endogenous BHD, which is Ketogenesis. (3)
Triggering the body to produce endogenous ketone takes time and some effort.
A quicker alternative is exogenous BHB consumed through supplements.
These products raise the blood ketone levels quickly without the need to fast or diet for weeks.
Beta-Hydroxybutyrate (BHB) Salts
BHBs are known to be effective and affordable ketone supplements.
They have been created in the lab to help people enter and sustain the state of ketosis.
A state of ketosis is simply a state where you burn more fat. It is a natural state for the body and there is nothing to worry about unless you are diabetic.
In essence, a state of ketosis occurs when your body is almost completely fueled by fat.
Note that this is normal during fasting, or when on a strict low-carb diet.
Such a low carb diet is nowadays called the keto diet.
Beta-Hydroxybutyrate Salts are a mix of exogenous BHB and mineral salts.
For instance, the BHD contains things like calcium, potassium, sodium, magnesium and amino acids like creatine and lysine.
BHB salts, when consumed as supplements, get broken down during digestion.
It is at the digestion time that BHB is released into your bloodstream.
Being in the bloodstream, the BHB travels to different organs where the ketolysis process starts for energy creation.
By absorbing food supplements, you can enjoy the benefits of BHB without having to wait for the body to raise its ketone levels.
And the good news is that are many benefits from BHB Salts supplements:
1-Puts you in Ketosis Quickly
Alright, let me first explain what ketosis is. (4)
I said it above, but this is a technical team and sometimes it is best to repeat ourselves.
Ketosis is the state where your body will burn more fat.
Isn’t that great? You eat some supplements and you burn more fat. That’s what I call great news.
Absorbing supplementing BHB levels with BHB salts raises the levels of your body BHB 85 percent faster than the general time your body takes to raise it on its own.
So when you eat BHD supplement, you should almost instantly put you in Ketosis state.
This means you’ll start burning fat quickly.
2- Reduces ‘Keto Flu’ Symptoms
With BHB salts, users can stay away from the side effects of the adaptation to a ketogenic diet.
This includes symptoms like nausea, brain fog, cravings, irritability, sore muscles, and stomach aches.
So, you only get to experience the positive side of a ketosis state.
What I mean is that when you want to enter into a ketosis state, you have two main choices.
Either you fast or you enter into a low carb diet.
In both choices, you’ll be irritated, annoyed, you may have nausea, etc.
So, maybe best to just eat BHB supplements and avoiding all of these side effects of fasting and low carb diet.
3- Normalizes Blood Sugar Levels
BHB Salts are known to lower the blood sugar within thirty minutes of taking them and maintain the level for hours.
So, if you have blood sugar levels issues, you may consider this alternative.
However, it is highly advisable to speak to a doctor about this.
It is important that you consult prior to trying this especially if you are diabetic. Do not add to your current condition, please.
4- Enhances Fat Burning
BHB pushes the body to burn fat for fuel faster and more effectively. (5)
Hence, any intake of BHB salts accelerates fat loss during workouts and as such weight loss.
I think this is almost like a dream come true.
Well no really. You still need to do some workouts.
So, do not expect to eat this supplement and do nothing.
That is not how it works. You eat these and then do your work out. Your body will then accelerate the fat burning.
That’s why you’ll lose weight. The combination of the supplements and the workouts is best.
5- Helps Lower Anxiety
Supplementing with BHB Salts lets you enjoy the anti-anxiety and anti-depressive effects of endogenous ketones. (6)
You can take BHB Salts easily by adding them to drinks and snacks.
You can also dilute them heavily in water to stay hydrated while increasing your ketone levels.
Another way is to add them to a keto smoothie, ketoprofen coffee, green tea or snacks.
BHB Salts Side Effects
Numerous trials and tests have been performed on humans and animals with the aim to identify the side effects of these supplements.
And these tests came conclusive that BHB Salts are safe to consume as supplements.
Most BHB supplements contain between 11 to 16 grams of BHB.
This is a safe dose that should not cause any major side effect.
Supplementing with BHB salts should be good as long as your blood ketone remains at a level of nutritional ketosis.
If you want to know what are the levels, have a look at this article.
If the supplement intake is not carefully monitored, you may experience mild dehydration.
And when you dehydrated, you may end up with symptoms like headache, fatigue, cramping, and dizziness.
There are other symptoms that are less common, but it is important to know about so that you do not panic.
These are constipation, diarrhea, and heart palpitations.
The one that is a must to watch is palpitations. If you have these, then it is advisable to stop the supplements and seek professional advice.
BHB salts are safe to take as long as you don’t take them in excess.
So, it is important that you do not reach high levels of ketones in the blood.
This high-level state can be toxic and lead to life-threatening conditions. So please stay away from it.
Beta-Hydroxybutyrate Side Effects
As you have seen above, there are a couple of side effects associated with supplements.
And like any other supplements, you need to watch what you are doing with these.
So, while it is completely safe to have high levels of Beta-Hydroxybutyrate, there are some other potential side effects to be aware of.
The ones you need to watch about are:
1- Bad Breath
As the body starts metabolizing fat, BHB can cause a poor breath. (7)
This is because a Ketone state is caused by your liver.
So, in this case, your liver will work differently and as such you’ll change your breath.
However, in most cases, the bad breath will disappear as time goes by.
Note that there is no much you can do about this state. Just be patient.
2- Electrolyte Imbalance
During the state of ketosis, electrolytes in the body may become depleted. (8, 9)
The reason is that you may end up with either one of these states: frequent urination and water retention.
And this is especially true for children.
Either way, you have to take it easy at the beginning when absorbing BHB supplements.
It does take time for your body to get used to BHB and like anything else, your body will need to adjust to the supplement.
3- Possible GI Distress
Ketone supplementation in large dosages can result in Gastrointestinal (GI) distress. (10)
A GI distress occurs when your guts and tract looks normal but doesn’t work properly. And this is true for both the colon and rectum.
Usually, constipation and irritable bowel syndrome (also known as IBS) are the two most common examples of GI distress.
But the best way to detect GI distress is when you have continuous pain, gas/bloat, altered defecation, and foregut symptoms.
The way to get rid of these symptoms is to go back to your initial diet and reset your body.
When you feel better and you have completely healed, you can re-start the ketone process, but you’ll have to go very slowly so that you do not upset your guts.
4- Hypoglycemia
High BHB levels dominate as fuel in the brain and make you feel fine despite having low levels of blood glucose.
In this case, you may enter in Hypoglycemia state. (11)
What this means, is that though you feel fine, your body may be low in sugar levels.
Therefore, it is important to keep eating some sugary things once a day at least at around 4 pm in the afternoon.
This is the time your body crave for sugar and it is best to give your body a little bit of it.
Avoiding eating sugar is not an option unless you are sick and you are not allowed to do so by your doctor.
However, eating good sugar such as fruits is best for you.
BHB Ketone Supplements
Some of the most common types of BHB Ketone Supplements are:
1- BHB Mineral Salts
BHD mineral salts are mostly known as ketone salts.
These are formed when BHB or other ketone bodies are combined with minerals.
For instance, they can be combined with calcium, magnesium or potassium to make them easily digestible.
These salts provide you with a more bioavailable form of BHB.
But they also give added minerals that help you recover from keto flu quickly.
Note that keto flu is a terminology used to describe flu-like symptoms. (12)
Usually, these symptoms appear at the beginning of the very low-carb ketogenic diet.
There is nothing to be worried about, but still, you need to monitor yourselves.
2- Ketone Esters
Raw BHB or Ketone Esters is BHB not combined with salt minerals.
This does not taste so good and is difficult to consume.
However, those who want to raise their BHB levels quickly can use these.
It is important to know that Raw BHB is easier to absorb as the body doesn’t need to break down salt minerals.
In other words, it is easier to get it into the bloodstream.
This means you can use Ketone Esters to get into ketosis faster when your ketone levels are low.
MCT Oils
They are a number of things that you can do to boost the ketone production in your body.
For instance, you can use Medium-Chain Fatty Acids oils.
MCT Oils contain fat molecules that convert easily into BHB.
However, they require more processing when compared to other ketone supplements.
Conclusion
Beta-Hydroxybutyrate Salts are the best Ketone supplement as they are completely safe to take and taste better than raw BHB.
BHBs are widely used to lose weight but also by bodybuilders.
However, they are being wrongly promoted by some as being a weight loss product.
And many of us get disappointed with them.
The reason is simple. BHBs do not work if you do not do exercise.
And what most marketers do? They just mention that you need to absorb BHBs and you’ll lose weight.
So, if you are after a miracle for your weight loss, then this is not BHBs.
However, if you are willing to do some exercise in parallel to absorbing BHBs, then you’re on a winner.
Be careful about the side symptoms. Though these are not risky, you must not undermine them.
The reason is that they can unveil some unknown hidden disease. So, listen to your body and you’ll be fine.
Back to you
BHBs are really effective at helping you trigger and sustain ketosis process.
The benefits from the health point of view of using ketones as a fuel are wide and proven scientifically.
You absorb these, do some workout and get the benefits of losing weight and feeling good in your body.
That’s as simple as it can be.
So, enjoy your BHBs.
Speak soon in another Omigy article.