In this episode of The Diary Of A CEO, Georgia Ede and Steven Bartlett explore the significant impact diet and nutrition have on mental health. They discuss how the ketogenic diet, by reducing inflammation, oxidative stress, and insulin resistance, has the potential to stabilize mood and cognition. Ede highlights recent studies that suggest the ketogenic diet may be effective in treating severe, treatment-resistant mental illnesses like bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and depression.
The episode further delves into the mental health benefits of dietary changes and personalized, holistic nutrition approaches. Ede argues for addressing the root metabolic causes of mental illnesses through diet rather than solely relying on medication. She shares case studies where patients experienced improved mental well-being by adopting a brain-healthy diet tailored to their individual needs.
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Georgia Ede and Steven Bartlett discuss how diet profoundly affects brain chemistry, and how the ketogenic diet can help stabilize mood and cognition by reducing inflammation, oxidative stress, and [restricted term] resistance.
Ede emphasizes how diet, exercise, stress, and sleep influence brain function. Many remain unaware of food's significant role in mental health.
The ketogenic diet alters brain fuel usage, enhancing cell function. Originally for epilepsy, it reduces inflammation and [restricted term] resistance linked to mental illness. Ede notes [restricted term] interacts with stress, hunger, and other hormones, causing mood issues on a high-carb diet. Ketosis provides the brain more reliable energy once liver starch stores deplete.
Recent studies suggest potential for the ketogenic diet in treating severe, treatment-resistant mental illnesses.
In a French study, 43% of treatment-resistant patients achieved remission from bipolar, schizophrenia, or depression after adopting a ketogenic diet. 64% reduced medications, and all improved mentally and metabolically.
Ede argues many mental illnesses stem from metabolic imbalances which the ketogenic diet can help correct. Transitioning requires medical supervision due to brain chemistry changes.
Ede and Bartlett expound on the mental wellbeing advantages of low-carb, high-fat diets like keto.
After treating patients unsuccessfully with conventional methods for years, Ede discovered an unconventional diet dramatically improved her chronic fatigue, IBS, anxiety, and depression when medications failed.
Ede has witnessed the ketogenic diet provide a "buffer" against mental health challenges for her patients. Case studies reinforce the potential for personalized nutrition to outperform medication for resistant symptoms by addressing root metabolic causes instead of just managing symptoms.
Ede advocates for personalized, holistic nutrition to improve mental health by establishing metabolic health.
To nourish the brain, Ede recommends including essential nutrients from animal foods. Avoiding inflammatory, oxidative foods protects the brain. Energizing involves stable glucose/[restricted term] via ketosis.
While metabolic needs inform dietary adjustments, Ede notes psychological factors around eating habits also require consideration for sustainable change. A team approach with professionals and peers supports this transition.
1-Page Summary
Georgia Ede and Steven Bartlett discuss how diet can have a profound impact on mental health, and how the ketogenic diet in particular can help stabilize brain chemistry and reduce inflammation, oxidative stress, and [restricted term] resistance.
The brain responds to every aspect of life, including diet, exercise, stress, and sleep. Ede emphasizes that many people remain unaware of how significant a role food plays for the brain, often misled by misinformation about proper nutrition. She suggests that correct dietary information can significantly improve mood, memory, concentration, stamina, productivity, and mental stability.
Ede explains that a ketogenic diet can lead to tremendous reductions in anxiety, sometimes within as few as three days. A ketogenic diet switches the brain's energy source from a high carbohydrate, high [restricted term] diet to one that stabilizes brain chemistry and enhances cell healing and function. Originally designed for children with epilepsy, the diet reduces inflammation, oxidative stress, and [restricted term] resistance, tackling root causes of mental illnesses.
Georgia Ede describes how children often wake up in natural ketosis and that this metabolic health and flexibility diminish as one ages. She explains that [restricted term] stability is critical as it interacts with stress hormones, reproductive hormones, blood pressure regulating hormones, satiety hormones, and hunger hormones, causing those on a high-carb diet to experience stress cycles of ...
Diet and Nutrition Impact on Mental Health
Recent clinical experiences and studies are indicating that the ketogenic diet may play a significant role in treating treatment-resistant chronic mental illnesses and improving various aspects of mental health.
Georgia Ede cites a pilot study by Ali Houston at Oxford University showing signals correlating ketone levels with attention symptoms in ADHD. Dr. Albert D'Antoni, a psychiatrist in France, conducted a study involving 31 of his most treatment-resistant patients with bipolar disorder, major depression, or schizophrenia. These patients had been ill for an average of 10 years, and all had at least one marker of poor metabolic health.
Ede reports impressive outcomes from the ketogenic diet. In D'Antoni's study, 43% of patients achieved clinical remission from their chronic mental illnesses, and 64% were able to reduce their psychiatric medications. All 31 participants showed improvement in their mental health, and 28 of them maintained the ketogenic diet for more than two weeks. Notably, participants also improved metabolically.
Ede points out that many mental illnesses are considered imbalances in brain chemicals like serotonin and [restricted term]. The ketogenic diet helps by reducing inflammation and oxidative stress and correcting the brain's fuel source.
Transitioning to a ketogenic diet can be challenging—patients in the study received careful supervision and support when switching from a high-carbohydrate diet. Medical and psychiatric supervision is crucial as the diet fundamentally changes brain chemistry. Conditions such as blood sugar and blood pressure, especially for those on medication for diabetes or hypertension, need careful management due to potential changes caused by the diet. ...
Ketogenic Diet's Clinical Research and Application in Mental Health
Georgia Ede and Steven Bartlett discuss the profound impact dietary choices can have on mental health, particularly focusing on the benefits of low-carb, high-fat diets.
Georgia Ede shares her personal journey with chronic fatigue, IBS, anxiety, and depression, and how she addressed these issues by experimenting with her diet. After 10 years of practicing conventional psychiatry and finding that her patients did not significantly improve with medications and psychotherapy, she realized the need for a different treatment plan. Ede's shift in practice came after she observed that chronic mental illnesses were not effectively treated with the standard approach. The unconventional diet she discovered – primarily consisting of seafood, meat, non-starchy vegetables, and poultry – drastically improved her physical health symptoms. This dietary change, which was contrary to typical health advice, also had an unexpected positive impact on her mental health.
Ede describes the ketogenic diet as providing her patients with a "buffer" against difficult situations, allowing them more control over their emotions and behaviors. She observes that symptoms often improve when patients adhere to a ketogenic diet, and when they stray from it, symptoms can return quite quickly. Steven Bartlett practices a ketogenic diet for its positive effects on focus and body composition.
Georgia Ede emphasizes the importance of knowing which foods nourish the brain and which can cause damage. This understanding allows for the removal of harmful foods, which can often have more profound effects on brain health than medication. The case studies discussed, including the story of Carl who found relief from his mental health issues through a carnivore diet, underscore the potential ...
Dietary Changes and Mental Wellbeing Benefits
Georgia Ede highlights the critical link between nutrition and mental health. She insists that personalized nutrition can be more effective than medicine in certain cases, especially when it comes to mental health.
Personalized and holistic nutrition that incorporates mental health improvement focuses on a brain-healthy diet's core principles: nourish, protect, and energize. Ede explains that mental health can benefit from a diet that satisfies these principles, even if improving mental health isn’t the initial aim. To nourish the brain, Ede suggests including essential nutrients in one’s diet, with some animal foods being necessary. Protecting the brain entails avoiding foods that cause inflammation and oxidative stress—key drivers of depression and other mental conditions.
Energizing the brain involves providing a stable supply of high-quality energy and maintaining healthy glucose and [restricted term] levels. Ede points out that there are various means to lower [restricted term] levels, such as fasting, exercise, and calorie restriction. Still, the ketogenic diet is the only method to sustain ketosis long-term.
Ede specializes in nutritional and metabolic psychiatry and speaks to how food affects brain metabolism and mental health. She mentions that more than 90% of Americans suffer from [restricted term] resistance or prediabetes, which are now seen as primary drivers of mental health issues. The degree of metabolic health dictates how much carbohydrate one's body can tolerate, influencing emotional, intellectual, and physical health.
Environmental factors like plastics, pesticides, antibiotics, and food additives can break down the body's defenses and should be considered when personalizing nutrition. Tailoring the diet to individual metabolic health needs is thus essential for mental well-being.
Ede suggests her book is for people with mental health conditions who seek a holistic approach. Adjusting one's diet to personal energy needs and metabolic health is important; for instance, an athlete Ede consulted with had to add some carbohydrates back into his diet.
The relationship between food and psychology is complex, influenced by history, spi ...
Personalized and Holistic Nutrition's Role in Mental Health
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