We all know that following a ketogenic diet - which is high-fat, low-protein and low-carbohydrates - helps us achieve our weight loss goals and improves our over health, but did you also know that this keto diet may help reduce seizures caused by epilepsy? The study, published in the journal Physiological Reports, showed that increasing blood ketones by using ketogenic supplementation can reduce seizures without dietary restriction in rats.
The diet cuts out carbs from the meals to allow the body to use fats and ketones for energy production. Since the diet is high on fats, moderate on proteins and low on carbs, it alters the body's metabolism, making the body totally rely on proteins and fats for the sustainability. Consuming a normal, carb-rich diet with specific ketogenic agents may considerably delay seizures caused by exposure to high levels of oxygen.
"Exposure to high-pressure oxygen is also a danger to recreational, technical and military scuba divers, including Navy SEAL divers, as a seizure manifesting underwater can be lethal," said lead author Csilla Ari D'Agostino, Assistant Professor at the University of South Florida in the US.
For the study, the team used a small hyperbaric environmental chamber to test the effects of ketogenic agents on rats that were fed standard rodent chow, consisting of 70 percent carbohydrates. They also received different ketogenic supplements one hour before being exposed to pure oxygen in the chamber. These conditions were maintained until physical symptoms of a seizure were observed.
The researchers found that the most effective supplement was a combination of ketone ester and medium-chain triglyceride oil, which successfully delayed the onset of hyperbaric oxygen-induced seizures. Moreover, supplementing ketone delayed the latency to seizures by 219 percent and the seizure severity was significantly reduced.