On 3 May 2008, at 18:49, Ron Hoggan wrote:

> By about 1930,
> the first drug to control seizures became available and the shift  
> was to the
> "magic bullet". Not only is it more convenient to take drugs, the drug
> companies spend a lot of money promoting their product, while dietary
> therapies don't generate much revenue and hence, promoting them is not
> likely a good investment.

Hi Ron

This is always the root cause.  Something you can pay for always  
pushes out something that is free.  We have a mentality that illness  
is a lack of medication, not an excess of poison.  As long as that lie  
is maintained to the public, the pharmaceuticals are going to get  
richer and richer.  It's just one of the things that sucks about the  
modern world...


> There is the added difficulty that the "Banting" type diet will be  
> confused
> with a ketogenic diet which is somewhat different. In ketosis, free  
> fatty
> acids and ketone bodies provide energy for our cells to burn as  
> fuels. In
> order to maintain a stable state of ketosis we have to eliminate  
> almost all
> carbs. (Which is quite different from Banting's reduced carbohydrate  
> diet.)
> Ketosis can be induced by eating a diet that is loaded with fats  
> (~70%) and
> protein (~30%).
>
> A frequent problem with ketogenic therapy is that there is more than  
> one way
> of inducing ketosis. William Banting was likely shifting in and out of
> ketosis much of the time because Dr. Harvey's diet allowed small  
> amounts
> stale toast, cooked fruit, and considerable alcohol. All of these  
> foods will
> cause insulin production - which stops ketosis.

This is something I should read more about.  I know that ketones are  
produced constantly anyway, even when carbs are in (some) supply.  So  
it'd be interested to see what a effect "normal" paleo diet has on  
epilepsy.

> Ketosis can also be induced by a diet that contains more protein and  
> less
> fat. The side effects reported in this article suggest that these
> researchers may have been allowing too much protein in their version  
> of a
> ketogenic diet. These are the symptoms of "rabbit starvation" which  
> occurs
> when excessive protein is consumed without sufficient fat.  
> (Carbohydrates
> can also eliminate the condition but then ketosis is lost.)

You may be right.  It still amazes me how few medical people  
understand rabbit starvation.


> Historically, most of my family's deaths have been the result of  
> various
> cancers. I have long asserted that I would follow a ketogenic diet  
> if I were
> to be diagnosed with any kind of cancer. After one person's  
> challenge asking
> if I knew what it would be like to follow such an awful diet, I  
> decided it
> would be a good idea to try it out. I have twice followed a  
> ketogenic diet
> for about a month each time. In both instances I have experienced a  
> sense of
> being a social outcast.

Why was this?

> I also experienced improved breathing, improved
> exercise tolerance, loss of a few unwanted pounds, more energy, and a
> wonderful sense of well-being. Early in the process, I did  
> experience some
> constipation, low energy, and hunger. I found that these symptoms soon
> disappeared (after 3 or 4 days). I never experienced vomiting.

Sounds like something that would be worth following occasionally?   
Maybe every April for example, when sweet and starchy foods are hard  
to get (in northern Europe anyway).


> I suspect that most members of this listserv would choose a dietary
> treatment if they developed epilepsy.

Or many other things.  I've spoken to people who have eaten paleo  
while suffering from cancer, I think maybe on here but definitely on  
the paleolithicdiet Yahoo group I started (and have since left).  But  
I haven't heard many details about the effect it had on the disease.

At a guess I'd say it would be far less likely that someone would  
develop epilepsy if they were eating paleo, although it puzzles me why  
a ketogenic diet wouldn't cure it completely.  (That said, "ketogenic"  
does not necessarily mean there was no bad stuff in what they were  
eating in this study.)


> For many folks however, just
> eliminating gluten from their diet is a huge undertaking.  I am still
> surprised by the number of people who tell me how awful it must be  
> to follow
> a gluten-free diet. (I don't usually tell them that I avoid dairy  
> products
> too.) While I suspect that they might not find it all that awful if  
> they
> tried it, they find the prospect of a gluten-free diet horrific.

Addiction and dependency I think.  I've experienced the same thing,  
despite the fact everyone likes the look of the food I eat.  The idea  
of not eating bread is far worse for them than the actual not eating  
bread.

Ashley