What is LCHF?
Educational information only. This content does not constitute medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider before making dietary changes, especially if you are on medication for diabetes, hypertension, or any other condition. LCHF eating can significantly reduce medication requirements — your doctor needs to know.
What is LCHF / Banting?
Low Carb High Fat (LCHF) eating — popularised in South Africa as Banting by Professor Tim Noakes — is a dietary approach that dramatically reduces carbohydrate intake and replaces those calories with fat and protein. The result is a fundamental shift in how the body produces and uses energy.
The insulin connection
Every carbohydrate you eat is broken down into glucose, which enters your bloodstream and triggers the release of insulin. Insulin's job is to move that glucose into cells for energy — but when carbohydrate intake is chronically high, cells become resistant to insulin's signal. The pancreas compensates by producing more and more insulin, eventually leading to Type 2 diabetes, weight gain, and a cascade of metabolic damage.
LCHF works by removing the trigger. When carbohydrate intake drops below roughly 50–100g per day, blood glucose levels stabilise, insulin levels fall, and cells begin to recover their sensitivity. The body shifts from burning glucose as its primary fuel to burning fat — a state called fat adaptation.
Fat adaptation is not a fad — it is how the human body was designed to function. For most of human history, carbohydrates were seasonal and scarce. The metabolic machinery for burning fat is ancient, robust, and highly efficient.
What you eat on LCHF
LCHF prioritises foods that are naturally low in carbohydrates and rich in nutrients:
Food classification
Green
Eat freely
Orange
Eat in moderation
Red
Avoid
The South African context
South Africa's LCHF movement is among the strongest in the world, led by Professor Tim Noakes and the Noakes Foundation. The Nutrition Network trains healthcare professionals across Africa in LCHF principles, and thousands of South Africans have used this approach to reverse Type 2 diabetes, lose weight, and reduce their dependence on medication.
BEMER + LCHF: The Protocol
How LCHF and BEMER work together