About Keto Diets
Ketosis is a natural metabolic state that occurs when your body burns fat for energy, instead of glucose. We might experience mild ketosis when we’re fasting, sleeping, or during intense exercise.
Ketosis is also a therapeutic treatment option for epilepsy, neurological, metabolic and chronic health conditions, as well as some cancers.
A Keto diet changes the way the brain is fuelled.
There are different versions of Ketogenic diets, but all restrict carbohydrate foods such as breads, cereals, pasta, rice, crackers, chips, beans, legumes, potatoes, corn, and other starchy vegetables, tropical fruits, fruit juices and soft drinks.
Ketogenic meals plans may often include meats, fish, eggs, seeds, nuts, avocados, and low carb veggies, such as green leaves, cauliflower, eggplant (aubergine).
Keto for Weight Loss
Nutritional ketosis is backed by scientific research as an effective approach for weight loss, as well as a treatment option for many other health conditions.
Ketogenic resources suggest 70-80% fat from total daily calories, 5-10% carbohydrate, and 10-20% protein. For a 2000 calorie daily diet, this translates to approximately 165 grams fat, 40 grams carbohydrate, and 75 grams protein.
There isn’t a standard one-size-fits-all ketogenic diet with set macronutrients (carbohydrates, protein, fat). Ketogenic diets typically reduce total carbs eaten and drank over a day to less than 50 grams (less than the amount found in a bagel) and as low as 20 grams a day for an adult and 10 grams per day for a child, depending on health, age, weight and a range of other factors.
Additional benefits often associated with a ketogenic diet include reduction of digestive symptoms, brain fog, improvements in energy, blood sugar regulation, mood and sleep.
Our keto plan is designed by Certified Nutritionist and Naturopath, Claire McDonnell Liu. It focusses on healthy, nutritionally balanced ketogenic meals and information.
Making it easy for you.
- Optimal macronutrient ratios
- Easy meal ideas
- Keto friendly guide
Request our Keto Diet Guide
Evidence highlights weight loss benefits, as well as improvements in wider health parameters associated with excess weight, such as insulin resistance, high blood pressure, and elevated cholesterol and triglycerides [1]
There are a number of reasons that the Ketogenic diet may support weight loss, such as:
- Reduced hunger and cravings due to satiety from high-fat or nutrient-dense foods.
- Decrease in “hunger” hormones, insulin and ghrelin, from limiting highly-processed foods and carbohydrates.
- Ketone bodies, the body’s key fuel source on the diet, may have a direct hunger reducing effect.
- Metabolic effects of converting fat and protein to glucose utilising more calories.
- Decreased insulin levels promoting fat loss.
Keto for Medical Conditions
Ketogenic diets are increasingly being considered as a treatment option for a health conditions, including childhood and adult epilepsy, cancers, neurological disorders, metabolic syndrome, mental ill health, glucose transporter type 1 (GLUT1) deficiency syndrome and pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) deficiency. Keto and low-carbohydrate diets are increasingly used to manage or reverse type 2 diabetes.
Medical supervision is recommended when applying Ketogenic therapies to manage medical conditions.
Keto for Epilepsy
Ketogenic Diets are well established as a treatment option to help to control or eliminate seizures.
The keto Diet is a high fat, low carb approach to bring about ketosis, prompting the brain to use ketones as its main fuel source. This creates an efficient energy source for the brain and helps to reduce seizures.
Dietary therapy for epilepsy services are often limited to children, with intractable epilepsy – that is epilepsy that has not responded to at least two types of Anti-Epilepsy Drugs (AEDs).
Children with myoclonic-atonic seizures, infantile spasms, Dravet syndrome and absence seizures are thought to respond best to the ketogenic diet. But research has generally been very limited, predominantly to studies with children with refractory epilepsy.
More specialist multidisciplinary clinics to support adults with epilepsy are becoming available in the UK and in the US.
Getting help
USA
In the USA, the Charlie Foundation provide a list of database of hospitals that provide ketogenic therapies for epilepsy, as well as a list of independent Ketogenic Professionals who may help with a range of health conditions.
UK
Matthews’s Friends is a registered charity that provides help to families and professionals with information, training and resources. Matthew’s Friends have a number of UK based clinics and delivers professional training for Dieticians.
The Daisy Garland UK based charity providing Ketogenic diet recipes, resources and training.
Australia / New Zealand
Perth, Western Australia
Department of Neurology, Princess Margaret Hospital for Children, Perth
Dr. Lakshmi Nagarajan
Princess Margaret Hospital for Children
GPO Box D184, Perth WA 6840, Australia
Phone: (08) 9340 8364 | Fax: (08) 9340 7063
Email: [email protected]
Victoria
Senior Dietitian Neha Kaul, Alfred Health
Adult and paediatric ketogenic dietary service
[email protected]
Sandringham Hospital
Caulfield Hospital
Professor Ingrid Scheffer, Director of Paediatrics
University of Melbourne, Austin Health
Burgundy St
Heidelberg, Victoria, Australia 3084
Phone: 03 9035 7344 | Fax: 03 9496 2291
Email: [email protected]
Monash Children’s Ketogenic Diet Service
Monash Children’s Hospital
246 Clayton Road
Clayton Melbourne VICTORIA 3168
Phone: 03 8572 3003
Website: monashchildrenshospital.org
Email: [email protected]
Email: [email protected]
Department of Neurology, Royal Children’s Hospital
Flemington Road, Parkville, Victoria 3052, Australia
Phone: +613-9345-5641 | Fax: +613-9345-5977
Email: [email protected]
Email: [email protected]
New South Wales
Jackie Gao, Dietitian
Dept of Nutrition and Dietetics, Allied Health
Level 0 North Wing
Sydney Children’s Hospital
High Street, Randwick NSW 2031
Phone: 61 2 9382 1021 | Fax: 61 2 9382 1200
Email: [email protected]
Dr. Deepak Gill, Paediatric Neurologist
Children’s Hospital at Westmead
Cnr Hawkesbury Rd & Hainsworth St, Westmead, Sydney NSW 2145, Australia
Phone: 02 9845 2694 | Fax: 02 9845 3905
Email: [email protected]
Dr. John Lawson, Child Neurologist
Sydney Children’s Hospital
Sydney, Australia
Phone: 61 2 93821658 | Fax: 61 2 93821580
Email: [email protected]
Queensland
Dr. Sophie Calvert, Staff Specialist in Paediatric Neurology
Katie Barwick (Dietitian)
Neurosciences Department
Children’s Health Queensland Hospital and Health Service
Level 12, Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital
South Brisbane QLD 4101, Australia
Phone: 07 3068 2880
Email: [email protected]
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.childrens.health.qld.gov.au
Clare Kreis, Metabolic & Medical Dietitian (APD)
Nutrition and Dietetics, Mater Group
Salmon Building || Raymond Terrace || South Brisbane || Qld 4101
t: 07 3163 6000 e: [email protected]
f: 07 3163 2442 w: mater.org.au
New Zealand
Dr Matthew Phillips, Neurologist
Waikato Hospital, Hamilton, New Zealand
Email: [email protected]
Dr. Thorsten Stanley, Senior Lecturer in Paediatrics
Wellington School of Medicine and Health Sciences
University of Otago
PO Box 7343 Wellington South, Wellington, New Zealand
Phone: +64 4 3855 999 | Fax: +64 4 3855 898
Email: [email protected]
Tracey Eccles, BSc, MSc Nutrition and Dietetics, NZRD
Dietitian – Medical Nutrition Specialist
New Zealand
Phone: +64-9-213-3308 | Mobile: +64-21-259-7940 Email: [email protected]
Europe
A list of Ketogenic Diet Centres is available here.
References:
- Harvard School of Public Health: Diet Review: Ketogenic Diet for Weight Loss
