Ketogenic Diet for Seizures

A ketogenic diet for seizures is an age-old treatment, wherein fasting was the traditional way of dealing with seizures. When someone starves, or goes on a fasting period, the body is forced to burn fat instead of carbohydrates, for its everyday energy supply. This is known as ketosis. Similarly, in the ketogenic diet, we focus on how the person suffering from epilepsy has to eat foods that are high in fat, and go easy on proteins and carbohydrates. The idea is to make the body burn fat for energy, and not carbohydrates, in order to avoid seizures. The diet includes sugar-free supplements, since there is a lack of vitamins when going by this diet. It requires supervision by medical staff to make sure that the child/adult isn't having any problems in adjusting to the diet plan. To go about this, one needs to get in touch with a dietitian, before carrying on with the diet on their own.

Ketogenic Diet Plan

The die plan entails that one must first go without food, for a time frame of 36-48 hours. When the body then has to start from scratch and afresh - that's when the diet begins.Protein needs to be consumed in about 1-2 grams for every kg of body weight, and the overall diet has to contain 75-100 calories for every kg in body weight. In this way you balance out portions in order to let the body use only what it has to, when abiding by the diet's rules.

Carbohydrates cannot be added to the diet in big portions, since this can have an adverse effect on the one suffering from seizures. Anything high in carbohydrate content, needs to be strictly eaten in very limited amounts. The first column of foods can be eaten without restrictions, since they have no traces of carbohydrates in them. The ketogenic diet for children is supervised by adults, after they have grown accustomed to what is all right to eat and what isn't. In the same way, ketogenic diet for adults, comprises the same diet rules, and effects.

Without Carbohydrates	Limited Carbohydrates	Rich in Carbohydrates	Foods to Strictly Avoid in the Diet
Prime rib	Hotdogs	Lemons	Grains
Shrimp	Pickles	Blackberries	Potatoes
Ham	Olives	Strawberries	Carrots
Tea	Onions	Kiwis	Peaches
Flaxseed oil/Olive oil	Pastrami	Grapefruit	Sugar
Heavy cream	Cucumbers	Raspberries	Gravy
Lobster	Green beans	Raspberries	Honey
Lamb	Buffalo wings	Limes	Bananas
Lobster	Peppers	-	Nectarines
Eggs	Sugar free jell-o	-	Foods covered with batter
Salt	Broccoli	-	Apricots
Butter	Cauliflower	-	Rice
Bacon	Brussels Sprouts	-	Popcorn
Pork	Mustard greens	-	Aerated drinks
Coffee	Lettuce	-	Corn syrup
Soy sauce	Mushrooms	-	Bagels
Duck	Celery	-	Cheesecake/cake
Crab	Protein powder	-	Peas
Salmon	Cabbage	-	Pastries
Trout	Cheese	-	Corn
Halibut	Oysters	-	Fruit juices
Tuna	Abalone	-	Pasta
Lamb	Wine (certain kinds)	-	Bread
Filet mignon	Artichokes	-	Beer
Mustard	Asparagus	-	Candy
Beef	Kale	-	Cereal
-	Bok Choy	-	-

Ketogenic Diet Side Effects

Using the diet for weight loss is also applied among many, since the body burns all that fat, while carbohydrate intake is substituted as an energy source in the process. The con of this is that the body can put on weight if there is way too much carbohydrate content in the diet. Like in any diet, portion size matters. There are subsequent side effects that take place due to this diet plan, since one cannot sustain this diet momentum for too long. These side effects are.

• Growth is stunted
• Dehydration
• Kidney stones formation
• Constipation
• Bone fractures
• Weight gain
• High cholesterol

In order to counter the side effects of this diet, supplements need to be taken that are rich in vitamin D and calcium, along with folic acid and iron. Medication needs to be monitored from time to time, since the body is undergoing a lot of change due to the diet. Like already mentioned above, Make sure to seek medical assistance while going through with the ketogenic diet for seizures, initially. It can aid children and adults, provided it is followed under supervision and care first. Stay safe.