Forgetting Things? Use Keto to Improve Brain Function

What brings many people to the Keto approach – including me – is the fat burning benefits, but one of the even greater benefits I noticed from going Keto was improved brain function.  When your brain runs on ketones instead of sugar (glucose), it has a MUCH easier time.

Ketones are a clean burning fuel.

The ups and downs of blood sugar is like a roller coaster – not to mention, the oxidation and glycation that occurs with glucose metabolism. This is just a fancy way of saying that carbs are a “dirty” fuel. When they’re used as a primary energy source, carbs create by-products which our body and brain has to deal with.

This is why as we get older, we experience more and more brain “farts”.  In very simple terms, the oxidized debris left by too many carbohydrates builds up more and more, clogging up the neural pathways – our memory and cognition connections in the brain.

This poor blood sugar regulation is another reason why Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease are often referred to as Type 3 Diabetes.

The research is piling up demonstrating the power of ketones to improve memory, cognitive function – and even to prevent the tragic effects of Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease. Seeing that these disease states are at epidemic levels and only getting worse, it may be worth making a shift.

There are other findings too which indicate that ketones improve mitochondrial function (energy factories in our cells) and that they even have been shown to regulate excitatory neurotransmitters in the brain – in other words, they help us be more balanced, steady and focused mentally.

If you’re into the science, a simple Pubmed search on Google will yield loads of clinical trials, reviews and animal studies all supporting the use of ketones for an optimal brain. Here’s one recent excerpt (which will link you to Pubmed, if you want to explore):

…the brain undergoes structural atrophy and lower brain energy metabolism in Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer’s Disease (AD)  and demonstrates that the deterioration in brain energy metabolism is specific to glucose. These results suggest that a ketogenic intervention to increase energy availability for the brain is warranted in an attempt to delay further cognitive decline by compensating for the brain glucose deficit in MCI and AD. 

TRANSLATION: The brain stiffens and slows down when fueled by carbohydrates.  Keto increases brain function and delays this decline.

How cool is that!?

A great book that’s also easy to read and well researched is “Grain Brain” by David Perlmutter.  If you or someone you love is at risk for these brain issues, educate yourself. Work with a practitioner and consider using more healthy fats and fewer carbs for brain fuel.

You can also incorporate MCT oil and Ketone supplements (aka exogenous ketones) to help boost the amount of ketones in circulation. But remember, you can’t out-supplement a poor diet. These supplements enhance a healthy real food diet. Here are some well formulated options I offer:

I hope this information and these resources provide some added insight to help you support a better brain.  I don’t know about you, maybe it’s me getting older, but my brain is way more important than flat abs, but luckily, this approach can help with both!

xo,

Ev