In the early 1920s, Mayo Clinic physician Russell Wilder tested his "ketogenic diet on people with epilepsy, and it has been an effective treatment for seizures ever since. Fasting and other dietary regimens have been used to treat epilepsy since at least 500 BC. To mimic the metabolism of fasting, modern physicians introduced the ketogenic diet (KD) as a treatment for epilepsy in the 1920s. For two decades this therapy was widely used, but with the modern era of anti-epileptic drug treatment its use declined dramatically.
By the end of the 20th century this therapy was only available in a small number of children's hospitals. In the last 15 years, there has been an explosion in the use and scientific interest in Kawasaki disease. This review traces the history of one of the most effective treatments for childhood epilepsy. For a bunch of recipes, check out these 101 healthy low-carb recipes and this keto shopping list.
The keto diet was originally designed not for weight loss, but for epilepsy. In the 1920s, doctors realised that keeping their patients on low-carb diets forced their bodies to use fat as a first-line fuel source, rather than the usual glucose. When only fat is available for the body to burn, the body converts fats into fatty acids, and then into compounds called ketones, which can be taken up and used as fuel for the body's cells. This makes a lot of sense, since carbohydrates raise blood sugar much more than protein or fat, 8 To lower blood sugar, eat fewer carbohydrates.
People who should avoid being in ketosis include women who are breastfeeding and people with rare metabolic conditions that are often diagnosed in childhood, 18.In my 33 years of working with nutrition therapies, none come close to the remarkable results I have seen achieved with ketogenic diets. I have had the honour of working with hundreds of people on this diet, which has taken me all over the world, where together with the Charlie Foundation we have trained more than 200 hospitals in ten countries. While Mancinelli says some people do the keto diet a couple of times a year, others use it to lose weight and change their eating habits. Another study of 34 older adults found that those who followed a ketogenic diet for 8 weeks lost almost five times more total body fat than those who followed a low-fat diet (1).
The ketogenic diet is usually started in combination with a patient's existing anticonvulsant regimen, although patients can stop taking anticonvulsants if the diet is successful. Once you have been on a ketogenic diet for a few weeks or more, you are likely to feel great and have plenty of energy. Fortunately, following a low-carbohydrate or keto diet can help reduce liver fat, improve insulin resistance, and potentially even reverse NAFLD. Some people following a keto diet also choose to practice intermittent fasting to accelerate weight loss or when trying to reverse type 2 diabetes.
Unfortunately, keto diets are probably more likely than many others to end with weight regain because they can be difficult to maintain over the long term, Carson said. There is some evidence of synergistic benefits when the diet is combined with the vagus nerve stimulator or the drug zonisamide, and that the diet may be less successful in children receiving phenobarbital. Although there is less high-quality research on the benefits of the ketogenic diet for other conditions, the emerging evidence suggests that it may be helpful for some people, and for many it is certainly worth trying. Another reason may be that keto diets help people to eat less naturally, by feeling more satisfied.
Two large trials of the Modified Atkins Diet compared to a non-diet control had similar results, with more than 50 per cent of children having half or fewer seizures on the diet compared to around 10 per cent in the control group. In fact, keto and low-carbohydrate diets can lower blood sugar so much that insulin and other diabetes medications often need to be reduced or, in some cases, stopped altogether. Here's what to avoid on a keto diet: foods that contain a lot of carbohydrates, both sugary and starchy types. In 1971, Peter Huttenlocher devised a ketogenic diet in which about 60 percent of the calories came from MCT oil, allowing more protein and up to three times more carbohydrates than the classic ketogenic diet.
