AN EXAMPLE OF A KETOGENIC MENU

The following is found at Ketogenic Diet Resource:

Here are a few examples of a daily ketogenic diet menu. As you can see, it comes down to eating controlled portions of meat, as much fat as you like, and low carb veggies. Any hunger in between meals can be handled with low carb, high fat foods like celery with cream cheese, or an slice of cheese, or a handful of macadamia nuts.

I've analyzed the entire Day 1 menu and included the results in the graphic on the right. The protein grams are a little high but at that calorie intake, the percentage of protein in relation to the percentage of fat intake is perfect.

Day 1 Menu

Breakfast

• 2 eggs, fried in butter
• 1 ounce of chopped onion, or other low carb vegetable
• 1 oz of full fat cheese
• 4 slices bacon
• coffee with 1 oz heavy cream

Lunch

• 3 cups of salad greens
• 6 oz chicken breast strips, cooked in butter or olive oil
• 4 T high fat, low carb salad dressing
• 1 ounce of full fat cheese
• 1 celery stalk with 1 oz cream cheese
• water or unsweetened flavored sparkling water or other unsweetened beverage

Dinner

• 6 oz grilled or pan fried steak
• mushrooms sauteed in butter
• broccoli or other low carb vegetable
• water or unsweetened flavored sparkling water or other unsweetened beverage
• coffee with heavy cream

To see more daily menus, click here.

From me:  I see that this day comes out to 2600 calories, which is pretty high for a normal sized person.  I would recommend cutting down the protein, which would make the percentage of fat a little bit higher.  I, for one, would gain a ton of weight eating all that protein!

THE COCONUT-OIL-DEMENTIA DIET

Coconut oil for Alzheimer's is garnering a lot of media attention. It is based on the well-researched benefits of ketone-rich diets in Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Huntington's, Vascular and Lewy Body Dementia.  

Learn about the coconut-oil-dementia diet, a rich source of ketones & other brain-healthy nutrients.

A coconut-oil-dementia diet focuses on foods that are rich in ingredients that help the body make ketones, as well as other brain-healthy nutrients that fight dementia. Here is how it works.

Glucose

Glucose is our brains' primary energy source. Like an athlete too weak to run due to hunger, a brain with too little glucose can experience cognitive decline. That means a person will have problems thinking and remembering.

As our brains age, they "burn" glucose less efficiently. Furthermore, research has shown that a drop in glucose metabolism usually occurs in people with dementias such as Alzheimer's. This glucose-drop often occurs years before people begin to exhibit symptoms.

To address this problem, scientists began studying ketones as an alternative energy source to glucose.

To read the rest of this article, click here.

MIND YOUR MITOCHONDRIA - CAN THIS APPLY TO ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE?

I came across this TEDx video by Dr. Terry Wahls, who has radically turned around her MS with the hunter/gatherer eating lifestyle.  Yes, the video is a little long - over 17 minutes - but I think that anyone who is following this blog is motivated to take the time to listen and consider the impact this way of eating could have on other neurodegenerative disease, such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and ALS.

ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE - WHAT IF THERE WAS A CURE? - BOOK EXCERPT

Here is a short excerpt from the book, where the author, Dr. Mary T. Newport (whose husband suffers from early-onset AD), finds out about a promising drug trial:

PATENT APPLICATION #20080009467

The first item to pop up was a 2008 patent application... on www.freepatentsonline.com.  This was a continuation of a patent application that was originally submitted by Samuel Henderson, Ph.D., executive director of research at Accera, in May 2000.  I printed out the seventy-five-page document and began to read it.  After several pages of legalese, there was a well-written summary of what was known about Alzheimer's Disease at that time in relation to their invention.  It talked about beta-amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, but also about a problem with glucose transport into neurons.  It said that researchers have discovered that neurons in certain areas of the brain in Alzheimer's Disease are unable to use glucose and that this same problem occurs in other neorodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's Disease, Huntington's Disease and Lou Gehrig's Disease (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, or ALS), but in different parts of the brain.

This rang a bell because I had previously come across research about the problem of glucose transport in Alzheimer's patients by William Klein, Ph.D., and others (Klein, 2008).  Researchers described a problem with the location of insulin receptors, which would normally be found on the surface of the cell membranes but are not.  The hormone insulin is needed for glucose to enter cells.  Insulin attaches to the receptor on the cell membrane, initiating a chain of metabolic events that allows glucose into the cell where it is converted eventually into the energy molecule adenosine triphosphate (ATP).  ATP is necessary for the cell to function and maintains its very life.  Some scientists had even begun to call Alzheimer's Disease a "type 3" diabetes (de la Monte, 2005), a concept that will be discussed at length in Chapter 13.

The patent application then described the "invention," which was based on the known fact that neurons can use a type of fuel other than glucose called ketones or ketone bodies.  Ketones are transported into the cell by a different mechanism than glucose and therefore, if available in the bloodstream, can bypass the glucose/insulin transport problem and provide fuel for neurons and other brain cells, potentially keeping them alive.

You can order the book here, or check it out at your local library.

The book I have been quoting from was published in 2011.  The new addition is being released on April 15, 2013.  The first edition of Alzheimer's Disease: What if There Was a Cure?, which details Dr. Newport's discovery and use of medium-chain fatty acids (which act like alternative fuel in the Alzheimer's brain), had such a strong reception in 2011 that a second edition is now in demand. In this updated and expanded version, Dr. Newport, a neonatal practitioner, continues the story of her husband Steve's progress and provides the most recent research on the possible connection between Alzheimer's disease and the herpes simplex virus and nitrosamine substances, as well as how infection, inflammation, and genetic makeup may affect an individual's response to fatty acid therapy. Among many other updates, Dr. Newport details the latest clinical trials aimed at removing beta-amyloid, which accumulates in the Alzheimer's brain.

I pre-ordered the book a few weeks ago and expect to receive it in a few days.  

DR. LARRY MCCLEARY INTERVIEWED BY HANK GARNER OF "MY LOW CARB JOURNEY"

Here is a recent podcast from Hank Garner of My Low Carb Journey.  In this 53 minute podcast, Hank interviews Dr. Larry McCleary, neurosurgeon and author of Feed Your Brain, Lose Your Belly, about the connections between eating high carb and the development of Alzheimer's Disease.

There are a few different topics discussed in this podcast, all on the topic of eating low carb to feed the brain.

Of particular interest is the research being done using an inhaled version of insulin that goes directly to the brain to enhance memory and reverse Alzheimer's symptoms!

Listen and read listeners' comments by clicking here. 


Related Posts: 
KETONE BODIES PRODUCED BY A LOW-CARB DIET ARE HIGH OCTANE BRAIN FOOD 
NEUROLOGIST DR. LARRY MCCLEARY ON HEALTHY LOW-CARB BRAIN FOODS AND TYPE III DIABETES

STOP ALZHEIMER'S NOW! - BRUCE FIFE - BOOK REVIEW

How to Prevent and Reverse Dementia, Parkinson's, ALS, Multiple Sclerosis, and Other Neurodegeneratvie Disorders

Review

Dr. Fife outlines a specific battle plan to combat these disorders, one that fits very nicely with what we know of these disorders and is easy to follow. I would encourage everyone faced with the possibility of encountering neurodegenerative disease, which now includes most of us, to read this book carefully. It is a treasure trove of invaluable information and practical advice. --Russell L. Blaylock, MD, Board Certified Neurosurgeon and author of Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills

A must read for any and all health care professionals, as well as any family members or friends of those stricken by these maladies. --Jeffrey Grill, MD

Stop Alzheimer s Now! represents a major step forward in Alzheimer s disease, exposing the reality that Alzheimer s and other brain diseases are inflammation-related disorders and therefore can be effectively treated and potentially completely prevented by reversing inflammation through better nutrition and healthy lifestyles. --Catherine Shanahan, MD, author of Deep Nutrition: Why Your Genes Need Traditional Food

Stop Alzheimer's Now!...will not only be beneficial for Alzheimer's but also for a wide variety of other diseases. I strongly recommend reading this book! --Sofie Hexeberg, MD, PhD

A must read for everyone concerned with Alzheimer's disease...the author explains how diet modifications and the addition of coconut oil can drastically change the course of the disease. --Edmond Devroey, MD, The Longevity Institute

The author's dietary recommendations are a valuable aid to nutritional therapy of chronic neurodegenerative diseases. I recommend this enlightening book to both physicians and those who simply want to better understand how our brain functions. --Igor Bondarenko, MD, PhD

A must read for everyone concerned with Alzheimer's disease...the author explains how diet modifications and the addition of coconut oil can drastically change the course of the disease. --Edmond Devroey, MD, The Longevity Institute

The author's dietary recommendations are a valuable aid to nutritional therapy of chronic neurodegenerative diseases. I recommend this enlightening book to both physicians and those who simply want to better understand how our brain functions. --Igor Bondarenko, MD, PhD

Description

Dementia and other forms of neurodegeneration are not a part of the normal aging process. You should not expect to develop dementia as you grow older. The brain is fully capable of functioning normally for a lifetime, regardless of how long a person lives. While aging is a risk factor for neurodegeneration, it is not the cause! Dementia and other neurodegenerative disorders are disease processes that can be prevented and successfully treated. This book outlines a program that is backed by decades of medical and clinical research that has proven successful in restoring mental function and improving both brain and overall health. You will learn how to prevent and even reverse symptoms associated with Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis (MS), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Huntington's disease, epilepsy, diabetes, stroke, and various forms of dementia. The information in this book is useful not only for those who are suffering from neurodegenerative disease, but for anyone who wants to be spared from encountering these devastating afflictions. These diseases don t just happen overnight. They take years, often decades, to develop. In the case of Alzheimer's disease, approximately 70 percent the brain cells responsible for memory are destroyed before symptoms become noticeable. Once symptoms surface, the brain is already in an advanced stage of degeneration. You do not want to wait until most of your brain has died before you start to do something about it. You can stop Alzheimer's and Parkinson's and other neurodegenerative diseases before they take over your life, but you must start now.

Stop Alzheimer's Now!  can be ordered by clicking here.

NITRITES AND NITRATES IN FOOD MAY CAUSE ALZHEIMER'S

A recent blog post by Dr. Mary Newport:

On April 7, 2011, a former surgeon general and Dr. Suzanne de la Monte appeared on the Dr. Oz Show entitled, "A Revolutionary Breakthrough in Alzheimer's Disease," (can be watched on his website) where she presented her important research. She is the doctor who coined the term "type 3 diabetes" in reference to Alzheimer's disease.She found by accident that giving a nitrosamine compound called streptozotocin, used to deliberately produce diabetes, caused Alzheimer's in her lab mice. She learned that the brain produces its own insulin.

She further found that this compound causes production of toxic lipids in the liver that cross the blood brain barrier and damage certain cells such that the brain develops insulin deficiency and insulin resistance. Nitrites and nitrates, found in very many processed foods, are nitrosamine compounds and could very well explain the epidemics of Alzheimer's, autism, diabetes, MS, Parkinson's and ALS, along with other neurodegenerative diseases that have insulin resistance, decreased glucose uptake as part of the process. These diseases have all been on the increase as processed foods have taken over our diets. I will add Dr. de la Monte's references to the website http://www.coconutketones.com/, in the very near future. These nitrites and nitrates are in most bacon, ham and other meats, deli meats, whether pre-packaged or cut at the counter, processed cheeses, cereals, breads, pretzels, crackers, white flour and anything that contains white flour, certain beers, scotch and some other whiskeys.

Now something that has caught my attention for newborns and children: I found one of these offending compounds, thiamine mononitrate, in the Carnation infant formulas, some of the jarred baby foods, especially the junior combinations, cereals and other infant prepared foods such as macaroni and cheese. The government requires that certain vitamins such as thiamine are added to enrich foods that have been stripped of these nutrients by processing, most notably white flour and other grains. Thiamine mononitrate is a synthetic source of vitamin B1, rather than a naturally occurring vitamin, and is added to very many foods. Just look at the ingredients labels. Most people eat something with thiamine mononitrate in it for nearly every meal. Naturally occurring Vitamin B1 (thiamine) is usually water soluble, meaning that if you eat an excess of it, you will pass it out in the urine; however, thiamine mononitrate is fat soluble and the excess accumulates in the liver and fat cells. The FDA regulations (21 CFR 184.1878) say that thiamine mononitrate may be used in food "with no limitation other than good manufacturing practice" and that it "may be used in infant formula". These compounds could slowly kill off insulin producing cells in the brain and other organs, and when enough cells have been effected symptoms will begin to emerge.

This could explain the classic development of autism in children at 1 1/2 to 2 years of age who were previously thought to be normal. And in Alzheimers' it is believed that the disease process begins at least 10-20 years before symptoms appear. Animal studies need to be done to determine if thiamine mononitrate produces Alzheimer's disease, autism, type 2 diabetes and the other diseases mentioned above. In the meantime, it would behoove us to read the labels and eliminate anything from the diet that includes nitrosamines, nitrites, nitrates; look for these words alone or in combination with other words, such as thiamine mononitrate.

What is left for us to eat? Stay away from packaged and other processed foods and eat whole foods: organic whenever possible, vegetables, fruits, eggs, dairy, goat milk and cheeses, nuts, legumes, whole grains (without added nitrates) grass fed beef, free range chicken, "natural" deli meats that have nothing added (they can be frozen to prolong use). I thought we were adhering very closely to a whole food diet until learning that many of the foods we were eating, such as deli meats and some "whole grain" breads and cereals, contain nitrites or nitrates. This could explain some of the deterioration we have seen in spite of everything else we are doing. Most important to our newest generation, mothers can avoid this problem by breastfeeding their babies for as long as possible.

Nitrites and nitrates are just one group of compounds we need to worry about for our newborns and toddlers. Also, consuming foods with medium chain fatty acids, such as coconut oil and MCT oil, can at least partly bypass the problem of insulin resistance by providing an alternative fuel to glucose for brain cells. And how could this possibly be related to the herpes simplex issue that I have written about? I found a 1977 article from the lab of Dr. George Cahill, Jr. ("Studies of Streptozotocin-induced insulitis and diabetes", Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 74(6): 2485-2489, June 1977), in which he used streptozotocin to produce diabetes in mice by destroying the beta cells of the pancreas-- an unexpected finding was an increased production of a type C virus in the beta cells that survived. Could it be that the virus is involved as part of the process that destroys the cell after exposure to nitrosamines, or is an opportunistic infection that takes over the damaged cells, which further complicates the Alzheimer’s disease process? The bottom line is to avoid any foods that contain nitrites or nitrates or any ingredient in which one of the words appears.

To read the article and comments, click here.

LOW-FAT DIETARY ADVICE PRIMARILY RESPONSIBLE ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE?

Population studies in tropical cultures that consume coconuts seldom see diseases like Alzheimer's Disease.

The harm of low-fat high-carbohydrate diets in cholesterol uptake in the brain

 The role of diet in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is continuing to make strong headlines here in 2011 as hundreds of millions of dollars in drug research have yet to produce any significant cure. One of the latest studies published appeared in the European Journal of Internal Medicine: “Nutrition and Alzheimer's disease: The detrimental role of a high carbohydrate diet”.

 

The authors of this study have noted how researchers have begun to direct their energies towards understanding the earlier stages of AD, since drug research in later stages has not been very successful. They note that several researchers have noticed a strong correlation between insulin resistance in the brain and early AD, suggesting that AD might be considered a neuroendocrine disorder of the brain or so-called “type 3 diabetes.” Other observations have noted an association of AD with mitochondrial dysfunction, which is also common in Parkinson's disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

But the authors’ main conclusions regarding the early causes of AD center around the transport of cholesterol from the blood stream to the brain. They state that there is mounting evidence which suggests that a defect in cholesterol metabolism in the brain may play an important role in AD. They give a nice summary of the brain’s dependency on cholesterol:

The brain represents only 2% of the body's total mass, but contains 25% of the total cholesterol. Cholesterol is required everywhere in the brain as an antioxidant, an electrical insulator (in order to prevent ion leakage), as a structural scaffold for the neural network, and a functional component of all membranes. Cholesterol is also utilized in the wrapping and synaptic delivery of the neurotransmitters. It also plays an important role in the formation and functioning of synapses in the brain.

They point to several studies that show a lack of cholesterol present in the brains of AD patients which is so vital for several functions, and also note that other studies show this cholesterol deficiency in dementia and Parkinson's disease. In contrast, high cholesterol levels are positively correlated with longevity in people over 85 years old, and in some cases has been shown to be associated with better memory function and reduced dementia.

 

The authors go on to explain that the lipid theory of heart disease started by the work of Ancel Keys in the 1960s led to dietary beliefs that cholesterol was to be avoided in the diet, and with that belief came the “over-zealous prescription of cholesterol-reducing medications over the same decades in which there has been a parallel rise in AD prevalence.”

How Coconut Oil Can Help

 

Coconut oil ... is highly saturated, and in its natural unrefined form has a shelf life of more than 2 years. Unlike unsaturated oils, it is not prone to oxidation.

 

Also, the study from the European Journal of Internal Medicine referenced above notes that Alzheimer’s, Parkinson's disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) all have an association with mitochondrial dysfunction. A study published in 2010 used coconut oil to show that a diet enriched in the saturated fatty acids of coconut oil offered strong advantages for the protection against oxidative stress in heart mitochondria.

 

Much research is also being uncovered now on the advantages of high HDL cholesterol levels, besides the study we mentioned above in direct relation to Alzheimer’s. A study appearing in the American Journal of Cardiology earlier this month (February 2011) showed that the higher men’s HDL cholesterol levels, the longer they lived and the more likely it was that they would reach the age of 85.⁴ A diet with adequate amounts of saturated fat is essential to keeping HDL high cholesterol levels. Those with deficiencies and suffering from neurological disorders need to consider a diet that is high in saturated fat, in stark contrast to the mainstream dietary advice for low-fat diets that might be causing many of these late-in-life diseases.

 

To read the rest of the article, which explains how coconut oil aids in the treatment of AD and the reversal of its symptoms, click here.

COCONUT OIL AND ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE - ALLIANCE FOR NATURAL HEALTH

How worried should drug companies be about supplements eating into their monopoly profits? A lot—as this story will show. Please share it with anyone you know who is suffering from Alzheimer’s or is worried about it.
 
Of course, just about everyone worries about Alzheimer’s. It currently afflicts 5.2 million people in the US and is the seventh leading cause of death. The cost of treating it is estimated at $148 billion.

Mary Newport, MD, has been medical director of the neonatal intensive care unit at Spring Hill Regional Hospital in Florida since it opened in 2003. About the same time the unit opened, her husband Steve, then 53, began showing signs of progressive dementia, later diagnosed as Alzheimer’s Disease. “Many days, often for several days in a row, he was in a fog; couldn’t find a spoon or remember how to get water out of the refrigerator,” she said.

They started him on Alzheimer’s drugs—Aricept, Namenda, Exelon—but his disease worsened steadily. (It should be noted that the latest research shows that the various Alzheimer’s drugs, like Aricept, have proven disappointing, with little real benefit and often distressing side effects.) When Dr. Newport couldn’t get her husband into a drug trial for a new Alzheimer’s medication, she started researching the mechanism behind Alzheimer’s.

She discovered that with Alzheimer’s disease, certain brain cells may have difficulty utilizing glucose (made from the carbohydrates we eat), the brain’s principal source of energy. Without fuel, these precious neurons may begin to die. There is an alternative energy source for brain cells—fats known as ketones. If deprived of carbohydrates, the body produces ketones naturally.

But this is the hard way to do it—who wants to cut carbohydrates out of the diet completely? Another way to produce ketones is by consuming oils that have medium-chain triglycerides. When MCT oil is digested, the liver converts it into ketones. In the first few weeks of life, ketones provide about 25 percent of the energy newborn babies need to survive.

Dr. Newport learned that the ingredient in the drug trial which was showing so much promise was simply MCT oil derived from coconut oil or palm kernel oil, and that a dose of 20 grams (about 20 ml or 4 teaspoons) was used to produce these results. When MCT oil is metabolized, the ketones which the body creates may, according to the latest research, not only protect against the incidence of Alzheimer’s, but may actually reverse it. Moreover, this is also a potential treatment for Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, multiple sclerosis and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease), drug-resistant epilepsy, brittle type I diabetes, and type II (insulin-resistant) diabetes.

So Mr. Newport, not being able to get into the drug trial, started taking the coconut oil twice a day. At this point, he could barely remember how to draw a clock. Two weeks after adding coconut oil to his diet, his drawing improved. After 37 days, Steve’s drawing gained even more clarity. The oil seemed to “lift the fog,” and in the first sixty days, Dr. Newport saw remarkable changes in him: every morning he was alert and happy, talkative, making jokes. His gait was “still a little weird,” but his tremor was no longer very noticeable. He was able to concentrate on things that he wanted to do around the house and in the yard and stay on task, whereas before coconut oil he was easily distractible and rarely accomplished anything unless he was directly supervised.

Over the next year, the dementia continued to reverse itself: he is able to run again, his reading comprehension has improved dramatically, and his short-term memory is improving—he often brings up events that happened days to weeks earlier and relays telephone conversations with accurate detail. A recent MRI shows that the brain atrophy has been completely halted.

Let’s take a moment to consider what actually happened here. Synthetic (patentable) Alzheimer’s drugs have failed. A drug company reluctantly decides to put a non-patentable natural substance (medium-chain triglycerides derived from coconut or palm) through an FDA trial. It works. But, darn it, a smart doctor figures out that a natural food can be substituted for the super-expensive drug. Not only that, the ketones from natural coconut oil last in the body longer than the drug version—eight hours instead of three hours. This is enough to make a drug company start worrying about its future. What if this natural health idea really catches on? Goodbye to monopoly profits!

Coconut oil can be found in many health food stores and even some grocery stores. One large chain sells a non-hydrogenated (no trans-fat) brand of coconut oil in a one-liter size (nearly 32 ounces) for about $7. It can be purchased in quantities as small as a pint and up to five gallons online. It is important to use coconut oil that is non-hydrogenated and contains no trans-fat. We would also strongly encourage the use of virgin oil (chemicals used to extract non-virgin oil are potentially dangerous, and better still, virgin organic, still quite reasonably priced.)

For more information, see Dr. Newport’s website. Sadly, you will not find any information on ketones, or the use of coconut oil or MCT oil, on the Alzheimer’s Association website.

Coconut oil is not the only natural product that has the potential to turn Alzheimer’s around. We will cover some other ones, and drug industry efforts to steal some of them, in a future issue.

To read the full article and comments, click here.

Related Post:
What if There Was a Cure for Alzheimer's Disease and No One Knew?