Fueling the Mind: How a Ketogenic Diet is Helping Me Manage Mental Health

Exploring the science behind ketosis and its potential to stabilize mental well-being through nutrition and metabolic health

I’ve been posting lately about how I’m following a ketogenic diet to manage mental illness—see Finding hope after decades of struggling. There’s a lot of research focusing on the use of nutrition to treat both metabolic conditions (obesity, type II diabetes) and mental illness. It has long been known that fasting is a medical-grade treatment for epilepsy (and some epilepsy drugs are prescribed for certain mental illnesses).

Fasting induces a state of ketosis in the body, causing the liver to transform fat into ketones, which are then used as fuel instead of glucose.

It is theorized that, due to modern diets, cellular metabolic pathways that convert glucose into ATP (a universal form of energy in the body) might be disrupted. This affects all tissues and organs in the body—including the brain, which is also an organ.

Following a ketogenic diet simulates the process of fasting by inducing ketosis in the body, enabling this alternative metabolic pathway to produce ATP. Research indicates that this process promotes cellular maintenance and ensures that energy is provided to cells.

In a malfunctioning glucose pathway, the brain might be flooded with glucose, but brain cells may still be starving for energy. This leads to brain fog, low energy, difficulty focusing, and various mental health issues. Enabling the alternative ketone-based metabolic pathway, either through fasting or following a ketogenic diet, provides a stable source of fuel to cells. In many reported cases, this has reduced symptoms that people have suffered from for years.

If you want expert information on these topics, check out Metabolic Mind — you’ll find plenty of analysis, reports, and discussions from leading experts in metabolic health.

Thank you for reading this post, and I wish you luck in your endeavors!