Wednesday, November 15, 2006
The Ketogenic Diet and The Glutamate Diet for Epilepsy - are they really the same?
The Ketogenic Diet for epilepsy restricts carbohydrates in order to reduce seizures. The glutamate diet combats seizures by restricting glutamate in the diet - a common protein that's also a neurotransmitter, which humans really have a taste for. Agricultural foods have been selected for very high amounts of glutamate, over centuries, and of course, we have quite a taste for monosodium glutamate.
Add in one more fact... not only do we burn protein when carbohydrates aren't available, but glutamate is even used as a food for cultured bacteria - it's easy energy.
So it occurs to me... maybe the Ketogenic diet is merely an indirect way of restricting glutamate, by causing the body to burn off more of it. Maybe that's why it works.
Add in one more fact... not only do we burn protein when carbohydrates aren't available, but glutamate is even used as a food for cultured bacteria - it's easy energy.
So it occurs to me... maybe the Ketogenic diet is merely an indirect way of restricting glutamate, by causing the body to burn off more of it. Maybe that's why it works.
