Keto diet and chronic pain
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I started my journey into the keto diet as a way to try to cut down on the amount of gabapentin I was taking, I figured if it worked for the epileptics, it might work that way for me LOL. But, I found a scholarly place on the internet chock full of all sort of tidbits about the keto diet and why it made sense for me to be on it for many reasons. I ran across a wonderful video about the keto diet and chronic pain that illustrated exactly where doctors in America are in regard to diet in treating disease states. These two doctors described putting their diabetic patients on the keto diet and they not only controlled the diabetes, they had a host of other good things happen, one of which was their neuropathic pain DISAPPEARED! This occurred over and over, so these two docs got together and gathered research to figure out why and presented some rather interesting ideas why. This is just one informational video at this place I found when you combine the words diet and doctor with dot and com. Some of you on here have shown much greater understanding of what's going on than obviously most MD's have, that's because of the neglect in our education when it comes to nutrition and diet. We were taught just order a consultation from the nutritionist. We presume the nutritionist knows what to do LOL. Well, maybe not, with the current food pyramid now falling apart, with my own cholesterol level falling 20 points after a scant 2 weeks on the keto diet. I think we all need to take a good look at nutrition and diet again. The reasons that the two doctors found for the keto diet helping with chronic pain were quite reasonable, I am still waiting for it to help with my chronic pain, but I haven't given up hope no matter what the clinical pathway is! In any case the video is well worth watching.
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sabrina51474 allaroundanne
Posted
Kudos!!
I have been doing the Keto diet for 2 years now, and if I fall off the wagon for more than about 24 hours I feel terrible...Immediate exacerbation of burning pain in my extremities, headache, and crushing fatigue. This is followed in short order by digestive upset of the IBS-D variety, such that I must put my fruits and veggies thru a blender before consuming.
This diet has been around since the 1920's, so has definitely stood the test of time. The only thing I would add is that back in the day, all animal foods were pasture-fed by definition, but since WW2, not so much. Pasture-fed animal foods contain more essential fatty acids, especially Omega 3's, and so are better for health in the long run. I do understand that for some, price is prohibitive or these products may just plain not be available at market, but even if you can only find pastured eggs, it is so worth it. If you live in a place where you can keep a few chickens of your own, so much the better.
I have been researching the autoimmune/inflammatory aspect of CRPS, and it turns out that since at least 2015, there is evidence that at least for some severely affected patients with full body or near full-body signs and symptoms, the neurological component appears to be a form of autoimmune encephalopathy.
If not already done, check out the signs and symptoms of same on your favorite reputable medical site. Historically, the CRPS literature is full of accounts of patients with neuro deficits of the "nobody knows why it happens but it happens" variety.
I'm thinking this is why it happens. It may be one or more similar types of antigen/antibody reactions, as cancer, fibromyalgia and dermoid cyst patients have been known to pop with autoimmune encephalopathy, but at whatever station a given patient boards this particular neurological train, they seem to arrive at roughly the same destination in terms of the affects on the central nervous system.
Effective treatment seems to be IVIG or plasma exchange, in any case. I think ketamine IV works as well, as a neuromodulator...At least it does for me. But only for about 3 weeks after each infusion.