George

I'm still up, despite the hour, eagerly awaiting to hear just how many medical schools don't want to accept me this year. Good thing too, as i've just remembered about George, a client I worked with today. For those of you who don't know, I work primarily with disabled people, often children. George is 15 and has severe epilepsy, and a few other things. He has the mental capacity of prehaps a 2 year old, no speech, little communication, lots of sleepy behaviour. Because of his epilepsy, George has been on a high-fat (low-carbohydrate) diet, so as to induce ketosis, which somehow reduces both the severity and frequency of seizures for epileptics. This has been well established in studies on children, and is also believed to probably help for adults with epilepsy as well.

The interetsing thing is, well, that George is physically in great shape. He is sort of muscular, which is strange considering he can barely stand up or get around properly, and is suprisingly lean, at approximately the 14% bodyfat mark. Yes admitedly he is 15, but compared to most 15 year old males we get comming in who are overweight and probably have a bodyfat of closer to 25-% bodyfat, old George is doing pretty good!

This is hardly an academic study or anything, but an anecdotal point of interest. George might well be a freak exception, but one thing is for sure, he's not dead! Again, maybe we'll all die on a high fat diet and george is again the exception, but my better instinct tells me not!

Keep it up guys, were just about a quarter of the way there, first week down! Most of the metabolic changes that have been occuring are just about to start settling down into some sort of rhythm over the next week and it just gets easier from there. Remember, if George can do it, so can you!!!

High-Fat Ketogenic Diet to Control Seizures Is Safe Over Long Term, Study Suggests