Key takeaways
- In mice kept on long-term keto, reintroducing carbs after keto was the worst moment: blood sugar went high and stayed high.
- A mouse study cannot predict what happens to you.
In mice kept on long-term keto, reintroducing carbs after keto was the worst moment: blood sugar went high and stayed high. A mouse study cannot predict what happens to you. Repeat bloodwork on one human can show his trend, which is why Dr. Mike's month did not end on the last burger.
What happens when you start reintroducing carbs after keto?
In mice kept on keto for months, reintroducing carbs after keto is when the damage showed most. The evidence says mice in a University of Utah Health study stayed lean but developed fatty liver. After two to three months they had low blood sugar and low insulin. Then they got a little carbohydrate, and senior author Amandine Chaix described glucose that went “really high for really long.”
Sit with that for a moment. The diet looked like it worked. The problem showed up on the way out.
ScienceDaily’s summary adds abnormal blood fats, worst in male mice. The hopeful line: ScienceAlert reported that blood-sugar control returned to normal once mice came off the diet.
Does a mouse study tell you what happens to a person?
No. A mouse study tells you what to test, not what will happen to you. The Utah mice ate a diet of 90% fat, and the university’s own write-up says plainly that mice and humans differ.
Here is the real problem. Only a person’s own blood shows how that person responds. So we tracked Dr. Mike at 4 test points. The panels are laid out in what happened to Dr. Mike’s blood.
Individual results vary. If you aren’t testing, you’re guessing.
What did Dr. Mike eat after the 600 burgers?
He did not go straight to pizza. The book records the plan that came next: keto-pescatarian, 75% fat, with 2,000 of his 2,700 kcal from fat, no red meat or poultry.
The carbs came back on purpose, and slowly. The film shows me setting the month at 35 grams of carbs or less. He admitted he ran around 42. So we started at 20 for a day, to increase slowly.
What that reset did to his blood is what the film is for. I will not spoil it.
How long after eating carbs does ketosis stop?
There is no single clock. A blood ketone meter is the only honest answer. In the film I name 0.5 millimoles per liter as my minimum for ketosis.
In my experience, the meter humbles you. On camera I admit the exogenous ketones did not raise my levels any more than not eating all day. A dozen finger pricks to learn that. Worth it.
What is the cyclical ketogenic diet?
It is strict keto most of the week, with planned higher-carb days. Healthline describes five to six keto days, then one to two “refeeding days” that take you out of ketosis.
Dr. Mike did not cycle. He kept carbs low for a month and raised them step by step. The film suggests the way out of a strict diet needs as much planning as the way in. That is my reading, and the mice gave me no reason to drop it.
Can a keto or all-meat month cause diarrhea?
It did for Dr. Mike. Dr. Mike wrote on Day 6 that his constipation turned the opposite way. On Day 15 he woke twice for urgent bathroom trips.
The evidence says this is a common early complaint: a study of keto flu forum posts lists GI upset beside headache and nausea. Those are self-reports, not measurements. The rest of his gut story is in what the film shows about constipation.
Frequently asked questions
Why do people gain weight after keto?
Most diets lose their edge with time. A network meta-analysis of popular named diets found modest weight loss at six months and little difference between diets by twelve months. The plan you can keep matters more than the one you start.
Most diets lose their edge with time. A network meta-analysis of popular named diets found modest weight loss at six months and little difference between diets by twelve months. The plan you can keep matters more than the one you start.
What are the symptoms of carbohydrate intolerance?
Symptoms alone are a poor guide. Dr. Mike logged a headache for 6 hours on Day 21, eating plain patties and water. So we tested his blood instead of trusting how he felt. A feeling is a clue. A lab is a number.
Symptoms alone are a poor guide. Dr. Mike logged a headache for 6 hours on Day 21, eating plain patties and water. So we tested his blood instead of trusting how he felt. A feeling is a clue. A lab is a number.
Should I eat 600 burgers in 30 days myself?
No. The book says Dr. Mike did it under observation for a film and that readers should not try it. The point was never the burgers. The point was to measure one fit doctor and see what his body did.
No. The book says Dr. Mike did it under observation for a film and that readers should not try it. The point was never the burgers. The point was to measure one fit doctor and see what his body did.
How is the book different from the film?
600 Burgers in 30 Days is the official book of the film and its prequel. It prints Dr. Mike’s journal day by day, plus the testing plan and expert interviews. The film shows the bloodwork. The book shows what living through it felt like.
600 Burgers in 30 Days is the official book of the film and its prequel. It prints Dr. Mike’s journal day by day, plus the testing plan and expert interviews. The film shows the bloodwork. The book shows what living through it felt like.
The Bottom Line
The mice gave us a warning, not a verdict. After any strict month, what matters is what your own blood does when the food changes. Get a baseline, plan the way out and retest with your own doctor.
Dr. Mike’s way out is written down, day by day, in his own words. Get the book, 600 Burgers in 30 Days, or read it on Kindle. Then rent or buy The Keto Project on Prime Video to see the bloodwork. What will you do with it?
Sources
- New Study in Mice Reveals Long-Term Metabolic Risks of Ketogenic Diet (University of Utah Health)
- Keto diet weight loss may come with a hidden cost (ScienceDaily)
- Mouse study reveals metabolic risks associated with ketogenic diet (@theU, University of Utah)
- Popular keto diet linked to glucose intolerance and fatty liver in mice (Medical Xpress)
- Mouse Study Flags a Serious Downside to Popular Weight-Loss Diet (ScienceAlert)
- What Is the Cyclical Ketogenic Diet? Everything You Need to Know (Healthline)
- Ge et al. 2020, Comparison of dietary macronutrient patterns of 14 popular named dietary programmes (PubMed)
- Bostock et al. 2020, Consumer Reports of Keto Flu Associated With the Ketogenic Diet (PubMed)
This article is for information only and is not medical advice. Individual results vary. Speak to a qualified clinician before changing how you eat.
The whole experiment is in the film. 600 burgers, 30 days, every blood test — and the ending we never post.
Watch The Keto Project on Amazon