High-fat diet protects brain cells

UPI Science News
From the Science & Technology Desk
Published 3/1/2003 5:27 AM

IRVINE, Calif., March 1 (UPI) -- A high-fat diet and related increased production of a specific protein appear to protect brain cells from damage caused by prolonged seizures, researchers reported Friday.

"What we understand now is a very important mechanism of how cells in the immature brain protect themselves," lead investigator Dr. Tallie Baram, professor of neurological sciences the School of Medicine at the University of California, Irvine, told United Press International. "Now that we are aware of it, we can see if it also appears in the mature brain."

In a study published in the Feb. 28 online issue of the Annals of Neurology, Baram and her research team reported finding very high levels of uncoupling protein 2, or UCP2, in the brains of newborn rats. They suspect the high level of UCP2 might provide the protection from brain damage seen in human infants who have seizures.

Previous research has shown fatty acids, the products of dietary fat metabolism, stimulate production of UCP2. Rat pups obtain most of their nutrition from maternal milk, which is very rich in fat.

Seizures affect one in every 25 infants and children and about 1 percent of adults. Adult seizures cause progressive loss of brain volume. Seizures damage and destroy nerve cells in adults by interfering with the function of the mitochondria -- the "energy factories of cells," as they are called -- that shuttle compounds back and forth during the cellular processes that produce energy.

Understanding how the immature brain prevents seizure-induced cell injury or death could lead to new methods to reduce or prevent seizure damage in adults.

"A seizure can 'rev up' brain cells and their corresponding demand for fuel," Baram said, "The energy assembly line cannot keep up with this demand. The system gets jammed, reactive oxygen compounds form, and the cell is injured or dies," she explained.

Newborn and immature brains appear to be protected from such damage. Baram and her colleagues hypothesize that UCP2, found in mitochondrial membranes, reduces the formation of reactive oxygen compounds and decreases the potential for cell injury in the brains of the immature rats.

Baram also noted the protective actions of UCP2 might explain why a ketogenic, or high-fat, diet, used to treat severe, drug-resistant seizures in children, prevents or dramatically reducing seizures. "It is well known that the high-fat, low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet can successfully treat children whose seizures are not controlled by standard antiepileptic medications," she said.

"This study provides a possible mechanism by which such a diet can provide seizure protection in children with devastating epilepsy," Dr. Carl Stafstrom, associate professor of neurology and pediatrics and director of the Pediatric Epilepsy Research laboratory at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, told UPI.

"The authors document protection from seizure-induced brain damage by linking the high fat diet to improved energy utilization by mitochondria in the developing brain," Strafstrom said. "This is a pivotal study in our search to understand how the ketogenic diet works."

Stafstrom cautioned that the diet is not "for parents to try at home." Rather, he said, it is a strictly monitored medical treatment that must be used under medical supervision.

"Our findings may very well help adults, but the answer is not simply to eat a lot of fat," Baram said -- as in the popular dietary program promoted by Dr. Robert C. Atkins. "In adults, we will go for designer drugs that target the uncoupling proteins and activate them."

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(Reported by Bruce Sylvester, UPI Science News, in West Palm Beach, Fla.)

Copyright © 2001-2003 United Press International

http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID...28-031834-2377r

Yes, be sure to avoid eating natural, whole foods. The answer, of course, is pills, pills, pills!

<b>Konk.</b>

(One of these days, my monitor is going to *crack* from all the skull-hitting it gets when I read this forum.)

Hey, this is actually one of the few times I've heard Atkins' referred to accurately as a high fat diet! Their advice, of course, is ridiculous.

Wanda

True, good point. It was also refreshingly referred to as a "dietary program", not a DIEt.

Gee, I wonder if this is why, after being on Atkins for less than a year, I was able to finally go off my migraine medication. I'd been taking the stuff three times a day for years and years. Migraines are closely related to brain seizures, and the med I was taking is actually a seizure medication -- they accidentally discovered that it also helped prevent migraines.

Anyway, it feels great to be off the stuff. It's the only prescription med I was on. Also feels good not to be spending the money!

Hooray for locarbing!

Coquina

Hi!

This is extremely interestin'...and Coquina, I am truly thankful that you are off the medication you used to be on and have your migraines under control.

I've applied Atkins for 6 months (so far) and although I am not 'off' my Dilantin and Frisium, which I take to control epileptic seizures, you give me hope that perhaps one day I shall be. I did know that the ketogenic diet works well in children. It would be great if it achieved the same results in adults.

Thanks, Tamarian, for this article and the other informative articles you post.

Many Blessings!
n0ah

I have only had one mild migrane since starting LC back in September. I used to get one to three a month.

I thought maybe it had something to do with sleeping so much better. But since we had our second child in January, my sleep is more disturbed and I still have no headaches.

Perhaps, this fat concept has something to do with it.

More energy, better sleep, clearer skin, fewer headaches, loss of fat, better self image... Will the benefits of Low carbing ever cease?

Would sure love to hear more about childhood epilepsy and diet, and the effects of various antiepileptic medications. Our 8 year-old still is adapting to Tegritol. Didn't do so well on Valproic acid. What would be the differential effects of diet? What interacts with what?

I'm not qualified to answer these questions, but here's a useful link, from Stanford's Medical program for epileptic children and the Ketogenic diet:

http://www.stanford.edu/group/ketodiet/

Wa'il

Designer pills = lots of $$$$$ High Fat diet = 0 profit.

Sad but true