Ketosis as a treatment for aspergers?

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I've recently started a keto diet as a method of lowering my bodyfat. However, I've also seen some studies suggesting it can help with autism. Does anyone here have any experience with keto diets? did it help you?

I was only planning to do it for a few weeks, but I might try to make it a long term lifestyle if it could help me socially.

I've found low-to-no carb diets extremely effective for weight loss, but never noticed any effects on my social skills.

I find Chamomile capsules are good for some social anxiety, though the effect is mild, it does help, without making you feel stoned.

I couldn't find any studies in people, just mice.

http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Ad ... ne.0065021

http://articles.courant.com/2013-06-05/ ... psy-center

Here's the problem:

Whatever is causing it in the mice is not necessarily analogous to what is causing it in humans. So what changes it in mice won't necessarily change it in humans.

However, it makes for a good self experiment. I think spending some time eating a ketogenic diet is possibly helpful even if it has no effect at all on autistic symptoms. At the very least, it will give your pancreas a rest from having to make insulin all the time.

Made me irritable as f**k.

You know, I've heard a lot of people say that. But for me, if anything, it's given me more energy and put me in a bettter mood.

Also, fellow Connecticut brah checking in!!

It'll do that for like a week or two.

Now I eat like 300-400g of carbs a day and life is OK.

Consider GAPS diet instead. Similar diet but if faithful, you'll only need to be on it for 2-3 years, depending how long it takes your body to heal. Also, it's not just a restricted diet, it teaches you why/how to cook properly. For exampe:

1) Why it's unsafe to heat vegetable oils
2) Why homo milk is "better" than non-fat milk
3) Difference between good & bad fats and why
4) The history of grains, corn and other multi-billion dollar companies
5) Difference between, mono-saturated, poly-saturated, trans-fats, etc
6) Myths of heart disease, cholesterol, high blood pressure

Again, it's not just "dont eat this long list of foods and maybe you'll be fine" diet. It's actually helpful in many ways with a lot of scientific data to back it up.

The ketosis diet *is* very well known for reducing epileptic fits, which is interesting.

The reality with any "Very low carbohydrate"(VLC) diet is that pushing the body into ketosis for extended periods, or asking the body to process high levels of protein leads to a variety of mild to major conditions; including, but not limited to:

• increased risk of coronary heart disease
• kidney dysfunction
• liver dysfunction
• bone density loss
• arthritis
• water retention
• kidney stones
• bad breath (ketoacidosis causes a fruity smell on the breath due to increased acetone in the body)
• body odor

So, it is something best done under the guidance of a physician or dietician (not a nutritionist) and only for short periods of time.

Sources:

NIH Article on Long-Term Benefits & Risks

Web MD Article on High-Protein, Low Carb Diets

Johns Hopkins, "The Dangers of High-Protein, Low-Carbohydrate Diets for People With Diabetes"

This study actually makes a ketotic diet seem pretty awesome and without risk.



The worst thing they could say about it was that it was hard for the subjects to do without somebody hovering over them to coach them. But net weight loss and improvements in cardiovascular risk factors? That's a good thing. Although nothing to do with autism whatsoever.

The webmd article takes a much dimmer view. But they don't back it up with studies. Perhaps because the studies (such as the one you posted) show that it's a good thing.

Lacking a link for the Johns Hopkins article I resorted to google which found me the Johns Hopkins newsletter.

http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com ... 685-1.html


bolding by me.

Does that sound so terrible. It worked well in the studies but could people keep it up? According to the other quoted study, some people just stop doing it. But the worst thing they could say with their supporting evidence studies is that people give up (because...cake?) and lose the benefits they gained. But that is truly praising with faint damn. If I had diabetes, I would do this in an instant. The studies show it's all good so long as you keep doing it (the studies also show that many don't keep doing it).

I've actually done it for quite a while (don't have diabetes, never did) and it's all good. (I was doing it when writing the previous upthread comment months ago but didn't say so as it was still self experiment for me. Glad I did it.)

My completely untested hypothesis for all diet-helps-autism claims is that eating a more healthy diet makes one healthier (duh), and being healthy in turn makes it easier to compensate for one's autism.

This is only based on personal experience; whenever I haven't slept well, don't feel comfortable, worry about stuff or eat too much sugary stuff (and get shaky), I'm distracted and tired from that and have less energy to put into being a bit less of an autist outwardly.

I swear by ketosis. <3 I live for my pink test strips of a'mornin'. Ohh yeah.

Just to put this out there:

any potential health risks which have been connected to low-carb diets (a high-protein diet NOT being ketogenic btw, since protein can be utilized in glycogenesis) can't be causally disassociated with the animal product-heavy specific foods which the participants consumed- I can't be convinced dairy and bacon are better for someone than olive oil and avocado, for instance, and a study called "Eco-Atkins" bears out the benefits of low-carbing (not really low- 50g a day) without the adverse affects associated typically with LC diets:

Eco-Atkins

Too often people associate a macro diet with this or that foodstuff, and it's silly.

I wonder if the irritability was due to it's detox effects. I've never been on this diet but reading it, it sounds familiar. It would take 2-3 weeks for your body to eliminate the toxins and adjust to the new program. Just saying.

But this is about the Ketogenic diet - which means you have to consume less than 20g of carbs a day.

A ketogenic diet with most calories from fats (cheeses, nuts, ...) some from protein (love bacon ) and very very few carbs has worked wonders for me.

In five months I've gradually and consistently lost weight - 25kg so far and my well being has improved markedly. After the first two weeks my natural energy levels returned making it easier to be more active because it felt good to get up and walk to the shop rather than drive.

Yes. Miraculous success. See the link in my sig for story & the diet and treatment protocol I've been following for several months now.