the evidence health professionals have to advocate it. The long-term diabetic effects of a keto diet are unknown. Suppose a metabolic illness patient and the healthcare team agrees that a ketogenic diet may be part of the treatment plan. In that case, everyone should know the risks and advantages.
Cancer
The ketogenic diet and cancer are contentious. A ketogenic diet may generate oxidative stress in cancer cells but not in healthy ones. The ketogenic diet prevents cancer metastasis in animal studies. Some cancer cases have regressed. Nausea and weight loss might worsen with cancer therapy.
There are hundreds of cancer varieties, each with its own pathophysiology and etiology. The ketogenic diet is not recommended for cancer therapy since current research barely covers the tip of the iceberg on its effects on cancer development. Before advocating the ketogenic diet for cancer, scientists and doctors require reliable clinical proof that it slows tumor development, prevents cancer, or improves symptoms.
Alzheimer’s Disease & Parkinson’s Disease
Neurodegenerative disease symptoms have decreased in modest human investigations. Some ideas suggest the keto diet may even reduce illness symptoms. The success of ketogenic diets in treating brain-based epilepsy raised the issue of whether they may cure other brain illnesses. Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s patients may benefit from the ketogenic diet.
The high amounts of ketones in the ketogenic diet increase neuronal energy stores, which help brain cells withstand and recover from metabolic disorders that impair brain health. Ketogenic diet antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties may also contribute.
As researchers learn why the ketogenic diet works, they may suggest alternatives that still benefit from it. However, patients with mild to severe neurological disorders may not accept the ketogenic diet long-term. Elderly persons, who are at risk of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, also have diminished appetite and malnutrition.
Thus, although the ketogenic diet may help those with very moderate or mild Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s disease, it may harm the nutritional state of older people, who are most impacted by these illnesses. The ketogenic diet cannot be used to treat neurological illnesses due to a lack of long-term data.
Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease
Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) is a prevalent liver condition caused by fat accumulation. This disorder differs from the fatty liver since it occurs in non-drinkers. Diabetes, insulin resistance, obesity, high cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood pressure put people at risk of NAFLD.
The ketogenic diet with nutritional supplements improved liver function and weight reduction in a six-month clinical investigation of NAFLD patients. Long-term ketogenic diet use in healthy mice caused NAFLD. The keto diet’s weight reduction and macronutrient distribution delay and reverse NAFLD. However, the medical profession warns that healthy keto dieters may acquire NAFLD over time.
The keto diet’s short- and long-term effects on NAFLD therapy require further investigation.
What Works: Plant-Based Diets for Chronic Disease
The keto diet is not the sole treatment option. Research suggests that risk-reducing diets work. Physician groups are now recommending plant-based diets for chronic illness patients. Plant-based diets are easy to follow and have been shown to minimize chronic illness and improve disease management.