The less I eat the better I feel. At my “Navy weight” of 120# (when I joined, and even retired), I’m unusually stable despite changing up various dietary protocols. Of course, I sample and cheat a lot but feel best when off of most dairy & gluten (& partly by association, low carb). Keto “research” (still loosely defined) seems to hold unique brain benefits— who among us is doing it and benefiting? Surely, results can be placebo & subjective as objective measurement is difficult . Curious: is anyone succeeding w Keto for PD? I think limiting / avoiding simple carbs hold immunity benefit, already (including fruit)- it’s just hard to tie it all down w our “home lab🧪experiments”...
Low Carb vs. Keto: The less I eat the... - Cure Parkinson's
Low Carb vs. Keto
Same here. Eat usually between 8-3:30 daily. 99% gluten free. 1 gluten free cookie a day with fruit, nuts and non dairy ice dessert. 99% dairy free. Definitely feel much better than prior and dropped 25+ lbs 1 1/2 years ago.
Agree, hard to pin down with supplements and exercise. Think they work synergistically. Don’t follow any diet but lots of veggies, fruit and fish. and 99% meat free.
Any wine or other alcohol (cheat)?
Yup!! Ha forgot to mention... 1 glass red per day with dinner. 4-5 days a week. Neurologist recommended and I agree. Kills anxiety and puts me in great mood with nothing but positive side effects. I used to drink a bit but since PD, one glass is more than enough. Have a beer once in a blue moon but not often.
And, do u find that when u are disciplined in one area, it translates to others (alcohol is easier to avoid , exercise is more appealing...)? I believe this is part of the placebo - psychology we enjoy. We deserve it!
Yes you, we do. However I always eat well. Recently had surgery and couldn’t exercise for several months. Still ate right. Still took supplements. I don’t have a problem with discipline. If I don’t move I get stiff, bad. Stretch daily. Meditation 4-5 days a week 10 minute sessions. On Amantadine 2-3 times a day. Walk 2-3 miles hills 10% grades a day every other day cycle intensely for 35 + minutes. Building back up.
A lot of dairy does seem to aggravate my symptoms. I allow myself to have complex carbs but take it easy on the sugars. Basic bear nature here – if it is within reach it is prone to getting eaten. So I do my discipline when shopping.
Stiffness drives my motivation, too!
I'm not going to lie staying in ketosis is not easy and I'm pretty disciplined with the way I eat and what I eat! I was monitoring my blood so I knew when I was in it and I was feeling pretty good in fact very good. It seemed I needed a little less mucuna then normal. Could it all be in my head possibly? Since the pandemic and my kids being home from school baking cookies almost everyday it has been very difficult to get back into ketosis. I'm not giving up on it because I felt so good when I was in it. I think I need more time before I render My overall decision. Stay tuned! I do agree with the less you eat the better you feel but that might hold true if you didn't have Parkinson's...
keto and low carb go together in the right direction. even with my mom I witnessed an incredible recovery by switching to the keto diet. read the story of Dr. mary newport. his husband has dementia and had an incredible recovery.
Her husband has passed away.
Husband was on a keto diet prescribed by Cleveland Clinic FM. He lost approx. 40 lbs. He is now trying to gain some weight back, and he has a little. Our diet was always Mediterranean which I believe is the best.
I been doing for over three months now. It like night to day the results of limiting most carbs. Mentally I focus a lot better, but most of all no more pain at all. They cut back on my meds due to the very low carbs. I was getting shots in my back every month due to the disability leg pain that I had for years. But now it is all gone.
So hard to know how i would be on other diets, but i like dr jeanmonod philosophy which marc referred to recently. "Don't stop living your life".
There is more than one sort of Zimmer frame. So I try to eat healthy, a Mediterranean diet broadly. But not obsessively. And I feel pretty good
I totally agree. Low carb & no gluten or dairy and I feel better. I know a guy with MS who is totally symptom-free which he attributes to being due to 0 dairy and 0 gluten in his diet.
Yes-@MBAnderson, that’s great on both of you! . Dr Terry Wahl’s had remarkable /miraculous improvement on essentially the same w/more extreme measures> keto . I think dairy and gluten free is attainable and if so, will be the best for me (& maybe most of us w Neuro disease). Although Mischley does not prescribe gluten free & is in favor of Mediterranean based on her studies,I think I’ll do it for good measure, as it helps keep carbs lower/ in check!
I have been clean Keto for about 7 months, lost weight and now I'm trying to maintain so added a few carbs. Dr Laurie Mischley did a study on PD diet and lifestlye, dairy among other things showed PD progressing faster. I looked up Keto and PD found lots of research on the benefits. Many things I do I base on research hoping for less progression of PD. At this point what else can be done?
She has more impact on my care than my local team ( both , in and out of the VA and civilian sector )including her advice on Rx & spacing to maximize effectiveness.
My diet is nearly impossible. Keto paleo organic with 18-22hr intermittent fasting ! Avoid wheat. When I stick to it,i feel way better. It's tough though. Actually easy when I am at work , 11 hrs x 4 days a week. At home it's tougher because my 12 yr old daughter just discovered she has a talent for baking cookies!
Ha, Bass, Cookies 🍪
You still “clean eating” most of the time? When you are low carb /LC doesn’t it give you a major benefit (vs. full keto)?
For me LCHF, GF ,DF is so much more reasonable. Even though full keto seems amazingly effective for some , it’s still subject to placebo effect and I’m not convinced of long term benefits. Intermittent Fasting/IF gives me a keto like blast 💥 and that’s good enough until
Hard data supports keto for PD, for me, anyways . How about you & others?
Number one , there's nothing like a good placebo!What i have been doing for a while, and it's been great, is 18-24 hour fasting 4 days a week. Every day gf, df. No wheat, soy, corn products except real corn, milk products except ghee and kerrygold butter for cooking, minimal carbs, organic as much as possible. So, very limited. I cut back on red meat as well to limit iron intake.
A typical work day for me ,
Black coffee with meds 6am
Water
Black coffee for lunch between 12pm and 2pm
Water
6pm dinner, anything I want within the parameters above
Water or seltzer.
Days that I don't work,
Black coffee with meds
Fruit or vegetables, snacks, nuts, minimal meat throughout the day
Water
Dinner, anything I want within the parameters above
Water or seltzer.
bassofspades - Sure is a simplified meal prep!
I can't honestly say they're stable. I describe my personal disease as bipolar. It goes from being practically asymptomatic to a shaky anxious mess. There's very little grey area.. for the most part I've been having more good days than bad days. I might go 3 weeks without a bad day, then I might have a couple of bad days in a row, then back to ok. Can't figure it out. I've been trying to identify the triggers forever. Today I was fine until I went out and did some weed whacking. Nothing strenuous but it set me off like a light switch. Last time I had an episode was when I did a light dumbbell workout. So much for the exercise is good for you theory!