Why this diet could be the next tool in treating mental illness

For many, the ketogenic diet conjures up images of “keto bros” flexing their muscles and obsessively avoiding carbs. But keto is a serious therapeutic approach for brain disorders dating back more than a century. As we learn more about the connection between metabolic health and mental health, researchers are increasingly studying this nutritional approach as a treatment for severe mental illness.

What is keto, how might it help the brain and should ordinary people consider it? Few are better equipped to answer these questions than Dr. Bret Scher. A board-certified cardiologist and lipidologist, he hosts the Metabolic Mind podcast and is medical director of the Baszucki Group – a nonprofit whose mission is to “make metabolic health mainstream.”

The group was founded by Jan and David Baszucki, whose son Matt was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in college. Eight years, 29 medications and 40 doctors later, his illness was declared treatment-resistant. After just a few months of ketogenic therapy, his symptoms improved dramatically and over time he has been able to greatly reduce his medications.

Ketogenic therapy works by changing the brain’s fuel source, Scher explains. In modern society, our brains primarily burn glucose to generate energy, but in some brain…

Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/