KETOGENIC
DIET
The ketogenic diet is a high fat, low
carbohydrate diet developed in the 1920s for the intractable epilepsy in
children. A significant advancement was achieved by a diet having high ratio of
ketogenic foods (fats) to antiketogenic foods i.e., carbohydrate and protein
(Welder, 1920).
A ketogenic diet consists of a daily
regimen of 19/kg protein, enough fat to make up the desired caloric requirement
and a very small amount of carbohydrates. The ketogenic potential to
antiketogenic potential ratio of 3:1 potential should be achieved to produce
enough ketonemia and acidemia to effect seizure control. Higher ketogenic:
antiketogenic ratios correspond with increased anti epileptic activity. This
diet was designed after the observation that fasting patients had fewer
seizures. The main object was to induce starvation like condition in the body.
The ratio is expressed in the
following formula :
Ketogenic potential 0.9
(g fat) + 0.46 (gm. protein)
antiketogenic
potential = (g carbohydrate) + 0.1 (g fat)
+
0.58 (gm. protein)
