Low Carb and Ketogenic Diets are fully researched sources for weight loss. It’s, no doubt, a common thing that everybody knows about low crabs and ketogenic diets. The astonishing feature of a low carb and ketogenic diet, which makes it more beneficial for human beings, is that they can help boost your brain health and treat certain brain disorders as well.
Lets dive into the river of information about how low carb and ketogenic diets boost brain health!
What are Low Carb and Ketogenic Diets?
People often confuse low carbs with ketogenic diets but it’s a fact that there are many features that prove them as two different diet plans. The differences between the both are jotted below:
Low Carb Diets
In a low carb diet protein is found in abundance but typically the whole carbs can be use within an optimum limit. The optimum limit for low carbs is 50-130 grams per day. This quantity is considered as standard to evaluate the calorie intake while you’re on low carb diets.
In addition, following a low carb diet leads to different options, i.e. ketones level in your blood sometimes get rise and sometimes drop down. You can use ketones to replace carbs as energy currency for your brain.
Ketogenic Diets
In this diet plan your carb intake becomes less than 50 grams per day. You cannot take protein in abundance. Ketogenic diets are considered a good way to raise the levels of ketones in your blood.
Comparison between both explains that your brain needs glucose in large quantities to perform its functions well. However, taking a standard low carb diet provides you with an average amount of glucose in the form of blood sugar that is used as fuel in your body. But your brain needs more ketones than on a regular diet when you’re on a low carb diet.
On the other hand, ketones act as basic fuel for the brain while you’re on a ketogenic diet. In the shortage of carbs, your liver starts to produce ketones to fulfill energy demands of your brain.
Role of Low Carb and Ketogenic Diets for Energy Supply to the Brain
While you’re discussing the energy provision through low carb diets, the major two processes that come into mind are ketogenesis and gluconeogenesis.
Ketogenesis: Your brain always chose glucose as its first choice for fuel. This is because unlike your muscles your brain doesn’t use fat as fuel. But there is evidence that the brain often uses ketones. This means your brain replaces glucose with ketones when needed and the liver helps your brain in providing ketones produced from fatty acids.
Studies show many hours without eating anything like during night sleep, your liver produces ketones but these are in very small quantities. However, during fasting your liver acts actively and produces more ketones. It also increases ketones production when carb intake falls below 30 grams per day. In the absence or shortage of carbs, ketones fulfill up to 80% of the brain’s energy requirements.
Gluconeogenesis: Almost all parts of the brain recognize glucose as their energy fuel but in certain conditions they use ketones in place of glucose. However, there are still some parts of the brain which always need glucose to function properly. So when you are taking carbs i a very very low quantity, the little amount of energy produced from the carbs is transported to those parts of the brain. Rest of the recruited energy comes from a press known as gluconeogenesis, that means forming new glucose molecules. The liver works efficiently to produce glucose for the brain by using amino acids, which are the building blocks of protein. The brain also prepares glucose from glycerol that is made up of long chains of fatty acids called triglycerides. Your body stores fat in the form of glycerides that function as a backbone of fatty acids. Thus, it is the gluconeogenesis procedure that provides a steady supply of glucose to the portions of the brain that need it badly, even when you’re taking carbs in low quantities.
How Epilepsy is Associated with Low Crab or Ketogenic Diets?
According to studies, sometimes periods of over excitement in brain cells cause seizures which are linked to a mental health condition, epilepsy. In epilepsy, uncontrolled jerky movements and loss of consciousness occur that are very difficult to treat. Seizures are of many types and people often experience multiple episodes even in a single day. Several anti-seizure medications are available in the market but these medications prove effective only for 25 to 30% of people with epilepsy. This means epilepsy is a refractory condition that becomes unresponsive to medications. However, modern research has proved that ketogenic diets are effective for treating drug-resistant epilepsy especially in children. The diet contains a high amount of fats that surrounds nearly 90% of total diet nutrition. This increased fat nutrition has similar effects on seizures as starvation. But the reality behind the association of anti seizure properties of ketogenic diets is still unrevealed.
Diet Options to Treat Epilepsy
Carb-restricted diets are effective for epilepsy treatment. Four types are considered more effective than clothes. Thor micronutrient breakdown is here:
Modified Atkins Diet (MAD): It contains unlimited protein but only 10% calories from carbs. Children are recommended to take just 105 of carbs daily but this quantity can be increased for adults up to 20%. However, the increased quantity is allowed only if you can tolerate it.
Low Glycemic Index Treatment (LGIT): This diet consists of 20% of calories only from carbs and 30-40% from proteins, while the rest of calories are taken from fats. However, one condition is applied while choosing carbs. You can choose the carbs only with a glycemic index lower than 50.
Classic Ketogenic Diets (KD): This is the most unique diet plan that contains maximum calories coming from fat. it consists on 90% calories coming from fat while 2-4% comes from carbs and the remaining 4% belongs to protein sources.
Medium Chain Triglyceride Ketogenic Diet (MCT diet): It contains 50-60% medium-chain triglyceride along with 10% calories from fats, 10% calories from carbs and rest are from protein.
The Classic Ketogenic Diet for Epilepsy
This diet is recommended in most cars where epilepsy symptoms have turned into dreadful conditions. According to many studies, taking a classic ketogenic diet helps improve epilepsy symptoms. An old study had found that when a person was given a classic ketogenic diet for three months consecutively, the seizure frequency went to a decrease of 70%on average. Similarly another study showed that a number of children who were under observation, were given the diet and they had shown greater decrease in seizures frequency and severity. Although all these studies are in favor of the effectiveness of classic ketogenic diets for epilepsy , a keen observation by a dietitian and neurologist is needed. So that the hypothetical results could be converted into confirmed theory.
Another problem is following this diet is hard because food choices are quite limited. Especially adults and older children find it difficult.
Modified Atkins Diet for Epilepsy
Many cases have been studied to check the results of a modified Atkins diet on epilepsy patients. The results prove that this diet is effective against seizures, especially for childhood epileptic patients.
According to studies, children were found with improved frequency of seizure when they followed this diet. The obvious reduction in seizures had confirmed that this diet is effective for epilepsy in childhood. In another study, adults were brought under observation to check the results of diet effectiveness. And the findings showed that some adults with epilepsy also had shown improvements when given this diet.
In addition, a comparison of 20 studies containing results of classic ketogenic diet and modified atkins diet, had claimed that people who remain stock to modified atkins diet show more improvement against seizures than any other diet.
The Medium-Chain Triglyceride Ketogenic Diet for Epilepsy
MCT diet has been used against seizures treatment since last century. It mainly consists of medium-chain triglycerides that are saturated fats found in palm oil or coconut oil. These are used for quick energy that can speed up production of ketones by liver. These are slightly different from long-chain triglyceride fats. They can increase ketones levels with limited restriction to carbs. This feature makes MCT a perfect choice as an alternative to other low carb diets. Many studies have found that MCY is a perfect choice for those who can manage seizures in a short time.
The Low Glycemic Index Treatment for Epilepsy
LGIT is another effective treatment option for epilepsy patients. The low glycemic index treatment diet is considered the most effective way to increase ketones levels. According to a 2021 study, LGIT when given to children with refractory epilepsy, they were observed with reduced seizures. The study also showed that the continuous use of this diet significantly treats seizures. However, some side effects were studied.
Low Carb Diet and Alzheimer’s Disease
Alzheimer’s is the common form of dementia. It develops in the brain due to accumulation of plaques that get yanked and cause memory loss. Studies show that low carbs and ketogenic diets can help people with Alzheimer’s disease.
In addition, many studies insisted that Alzheimer’s disease should be conceded as type 3 diabetes because it causes insulin-resistance in the brain cells that makes them unable to use glucose in the proper way. The condition leads to inflammation. Other stooges also found that it is a precursor of type 2 diabetes because it is like metabolic syndrome that increases the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s disease and epilepsy are similar in many ways. Both have common symptoms like seizures and brain excitability.
Benefits for Brain
Low carbs and ketogenic diet have many positive impacts on your brain health, including:
Memory: People in old age have greater risk of developing Alzheimer’s or other cognitive decline issues. Adding a very low crab diet or 10 to 12 months continuously can help lower these risks. Although the studies are small about this theory but results are still promising.
Migraine: Low carbs diet helps people with migraine to get relief from the pain.
Brain Function: If you’re an obese with age more than 50, a ketogenic diet is an effective way to improve your brain function and lose weight as well.
Parkinson’s Disease: Low fat but high fat diet with a combination of ketogenic diet has been found with positive impacts for those living with Parkinson’s disease. Research proves that eating a ketogenic diet helps improve pain and other non-motor symptoms in patients of Parkinson’s disease.
Congenital Hyperinsulinism: It is the type of brain damage that is caused by low blood sugar levels. Ketogenic diet can help treat the condition.
Potential Risks related to Low Carb and Ketogenic Diet
Sometimes, it happens that you want to have a low carb and ketogenic diet but your healthcare provider doesn’t recommend it. They think it is not suitable for you. The reason is the health related risk caused by low carb or ketogenic diet.
Studies show that ketogenic diets cause several health problems, such as liver failure, certain blood disorders, and pancreatitis. So, if you are experiencing symptoms of any sort of health disorder, talk to your doctor before shifting to a ketogenic diet.
The common side effects of low carb or ketogenic diet include:
Kidney Stones: Children undergoing ketogenic diet for the treatment of epilepsy often develop kidney stones. The kidney stones can be removed with the help of potassium citrate.
Constipation: It is a common disorder linked to ketogenic diet. It also affects children more than adults, stool softeners and some dietary changes can help treat constipation caused by a low carb diet.
Elevated Levels of Cholesterol: Ketogenic diet often causes elevated levels of cholesterol but it’s a temporary ailment and has no effect on your heart health.
After reading the side effects of ketogenic diets, the thing to remember is, children should stop taking ketogenic diets once their seizures have resolved. Short-term use of a low carb diet doesn’t affect your health but its long-term and continuous use can cause health conditions.
Conclusion
Science-based evidence has provided that a low carb or ketogenic diet has many beneficial effects on your overall health. It is not only supportive or maintaining your physical fitness but also plays a key role in promoting your brain health. Its most powerful and verified proof is the effectiveness of ketogenic diets for the treatment of epilepsy in children.
In addition, some evidence also has shown that a ketogenic diet is good for the people coping with symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. Although research is not complete but the benefits are obvious. Despite all this evidence, these diets can’t suit everyone equally. So it is good to talk to your doctor before starting these diets.
