Modified Atkins Diet
 

Has anyone here tried the Modified Atkins Diet (MAD)? Meds do not work for me, and a resection only stopped seizures for about a year. I just went through another depth electrode and grid study in November, but they decided the area was too large to remove. They told me I'm a prime candidate for the Neuropace RNS, but it won't be approved until later this year.

Hi karend,

My Epileptologist has asked me to try the ketogenic diet which is very much like the Atkins diet only more strict. Just like you I'm drug resistant and I've had depth electrode surgery done along with right temporal lobe surgery and it helped reduce my seizures for awhile but then I was put on the drug "Neurontin" and that drug caused more brain damage so it's just like I never had surgery. The ketogenic diet is a diet high in fat but low in carbs and starch foods. I have to have 4 grams of fat for every gram of protein. I've lost a lot of weight while on the diet and it has helped reduce my seizures really good. You can buy the book titled " The Epilepsy Diet Treatment" by Dr. John Freeman who works at Hopkins University. This book explains how you build up ketones in your body which helps stop seizures and you burn the fat off for energy instead of using sugar. You will probably have to see a dietician and in some cases they will make you fast for 2 days. Sometimes a person will be admitted into the hospital for a few days to observe how their body reacts to the diet. You will have to take multiple vitamins with minerals and eat a lot of cheesecake, along with using heavy creams, butter, and canola or olive oil for cooking instead of regular vegetable oil. I wish you the best of luck and May God Bless You!

Sue