What is the Ketogenic Diet?
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The ketogenic diet was created in 1924 by Dr. Russell Wilder at the Mayo Clinic. The diet consists of high fat with a moderate amount of protein and low in carbohydrates. Fat is converted in the liver into fatty acids and ketone bodies. As wild as it may seem, this combination changes the way energy is used in the body. Another effect of the diet is that it lowers glucose levels and improves insulin resistance. An elevated level of ketone bodies in the blood, a state known as ketosis, leads to a reduction in the occurrence of epileptic seizures. For families with loved ones diagnosed with refractory epilepsy, this diet is a true miracle and much needed relief! The diet works so well that it is actually being used as a therapy for Parkinsons' Disease, Brain/Tumor Cancer, Autism, Alzheimers, and so much more.
For more information, visit The Charlie Foundation and the Epilepsy Foundation. |
This slide was included in Dr. Amy Kao's (Children's National Medical Center) presentation at the Manhattan Beach Conference. Basically what it tells us is that by the third anti-epileptic drug there is a one percent chance of seizure freedom, and a three percent chance when they add an adjunctive drug. Who would bet their life on odds like that?! Now lets look at the response rate of ketogenic therapies...
Two-thirds see improvement, Fifty percent have seizure reduction of at least fifty percent, and fifteen to twenty-five percent become seizure free. Learn more about ketogenic therapies by visiting www.charliefoundation.org. Information provided by The Charlie Foundation. |