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Journal of Public Health Policy and Planning | Volume 3
April 08-09, 2019 | Zurich, Switzerland
Health Care and Neuroscience
International Conference on
Ketogenic diet therapies for Neurological disorders
Beth A Zupec-Kania
Consultant to the Charlie Foundation, USA
I
n 400BC, Hippocrates wrote that he cured a
man who had seizures through fasting. In an
attempt to simulate fasting, the classic Ketogenic
Diet (KD) was designed in 1921 at the Mayo
Clinic. Although effective at controlling seizures,
its restrictive nature limited widespread use. The
discovery of several anti-seizure medications
over many decades resulted in near extinction of
the diet until 1994 when the parents of Charlie
Abrahams started a foundation to advocate for the
KD that completely arrested his seizures. Multiple
randomized controlled trials and prospective
studies have confirmed the response rate of
approximately 50% in children and adults with
medication-resistant epilepsy. A 2018 consensus
guideline, “Optimal clinical management of
children receiving dietary therapies for epilepsy”,
published in Epilepsy Open, advised that the
KD be offered to patients after the failure of
two anti-seizure medications. All KDs are high
in fat, moderate in protein, and restricted in
carbohydrate and are referred to as “ketogenic
diet therapies” (KDTs) to highlight medical
management. Variations of the classic KD have
been designed in recent years to make the diet
more tolerable. In the absence of carbohydrate
intake, mitochondrial beta-oxygenation of fat
in the liver generates ketone bodies which can
be readily used as an energy source. Through a
series of complex mechanisms, the diet has been
found to have a powerful anti-inflammatory
effect. Animal research has confirmed that
mitochondrial, neuronal, and mammalian target
of rapamycin (mTOR) pathways are positively
affected, which may account for the anti-epileptic
effect and improvement in brain function. New
applications for KDTs have emerged in recent
years including benefits in autism, diabetes,
migraine headache, Parkinson’s disease, early-
onset Alzheimer’s disease, Prader Willi syndrome,
and traumatic brain injury. Use of KDTs for
glioblastoma brain cancer has shown benefit in
inhibiting cancer growth and improving tumour
response to traditional cancer therapies.
e
:
ketokania@icloud.com