Last Updated on March 3, 2024
Being on a ketogenic diet is not only beneficial to your body. It doesn’t just help in addressing your weight issue. Apparently, achieving a full keto can help shape your brain to function well.
Although it sounds absurd at first, this claim is valid. In fact, this particular diet is encouraged due to its miracle-like benefits to your mental faculties.
Three years ago–when I was still not doing this diet–I tend to be forgetful and inattentive. I was quite shabby back then. Fortunately, I learned to embrace this unique diet and made things better for myself.
Here is how ketogenic diet improves your brain function.
1. Enhances ATP Production
Your body requires energy for it to operate. That’s the gist of it. Therefore, you need as much as ATP as you can to get your system going.
ATP, or the adenosine triphosphate, is the primary energy unit of our body. It is produced in the mitochondria of the cell. It is notable that some cells have more mitochondria than the others, depending on the organ or part that they are situated.
The brain is one of the organs of the body that has a lot of mitochondria. After all, it is considered as the most active part of your body. It should be supplied with enough energy to keep on working.
Mitochondrial biogenesis ensures that the production of ATP in the mitochondria is optimized. The effects of a ketogenic diet can trigger this mechanism–the same with fasting.
2. Improves Ketone Production
The sugar in your blood, which is known as glucose, is also essential in your brain. It acts as a fuel source, same as ATP. Take into account that your brain muscles cannot use fat as its primary fuel source.
Alternatively, your brain can also use ketones as its fuel. When the insulin and glucose levels are deficient, your body will automatically produce ketones. Most of the time, it is derived from your liver.
The process of producing ketones drastically improves when you are in ketogenesis. When the carbohydrate level of your body goes down by 50 grams per day, the liver doubles its ketone production. Once glucose is depleted, ketones can replace it so that your brain’s function will be further elevated.
3. Reduces Epileptic Seizures
Nobody wants to suffer from epilepsy. It is one of the malign diseases that causes uncontrolled seizures of the body. It is suggested that the over-stimulation of brain cells is the primary cause of this condition.
People with epilepsy are susceptible to jerking uncontrollably. In some cases, it can also cause a person to lose consciousness. Fortunately, a full ketogenic diet can help prevent this thing from happening.
The foods that are included on a standard ketogenic diet are said to weaken the chances of a person to suffer from seizures. For instance, the classic ketogenic menu, which provides for butter and organic fatty foods, are said to reduce epileptic-related seizures.
If you want to improve the effects of the ketogenic diet for addressing conditions like epilepsy, you need a clean fuel source. When it comes to this, you might want to consider BHB salts.
BHB, or the beta-hydroxybutyrate, is a type of ketone body that makes up the majority of the ketones in your system. It is preferred by your body over other ketogenic bodies because of its stability and abundance.
4. Optimizes Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor
I am pretty sure that only a few of you have heard about the brain-derived neurotrophic factor. It might not have been discussed on your elementary and secondary science class. However, this one serves utter importance to the function of your brain.
The BDNF functions by regulating the neural network of your brain. It helps in the growth of these connections so that your mind can work properly. In the flipside, it is also told that a variety of mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, are caused by depleted BDNF.
Fortunately, Fasting and low-carbohydrate diet, like the ketogenic diet, can help in the production of BDNF. These diets keep the BDNF levels of your brain to the appropriate level, which ensures the stability of its neural connections.
5. Promotes Brain Relaxation and Focus
People who are into the ketogenic diet are more relaxed and focused. That’s because they have achieved the perfect balance between GABA and glutamate.
Both GABA and glutamate are essential neurotransmitters in your brain. They are directly responsible for relaxation and heightened focus, which is excellent for every workhorse out there.
However, it is necessary that these two brain components strike a proper balance before these beneficial effects can be relished.
For instance, excessive production of glutamate is said to cause autism, mood disorders, and epilepsy. Therefore, there’s a need to convert the excess glutamate into GABA to retain the balance again. Fortunately, a ketogenic diet can speed up this conversion process.
Keep Your Brain Healthy With Keto!
As you can see, the benefits of a ketogenic diet are not only seen in the shedding of weight. The most critical perks of this diet are usually experienced by your brain. Heightened mental function and resistance to diseases are among the things that your mind can receive once you trigger full ketosis.
If you want your brain to be healthy all the time, the keto diet is right for you!