Can intermittent fasting support ketosis and help treat serious mental illnesses like bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, depression, and anxiety?
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Can intermittent fasting help with ketosis or help with treating mental disorders like bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, depression, anxiety or others? Here at the nonprofit, Metabolic Mind, we share education and resources about metabolic psychiatry and the potential for ketogenic diets, what we call ketogenic therapy, to be a safe and effective psychiatric treatment.
Should ketogenic therapies include intermittent fasting?
But one question we get a lot of, is if intermittent fasting should be part of ketogenic therapy as it fits in the metabolic psychiatry. So in this quick video, I’ll do my best to answer that question, but first we have to define intermittent fasting.
What is intermittent fasting?
For most people, when they say intermittent fasting, they’re referring to a type of time restricted eating, like eating in an 8 hour window from 10 AM to 6 PM, and fasting from a 16 hour window from 6 PM until 10 AM. the next morning. That’s called 16-8, or they could mean 18-6, the amount of time that they’re fasting, the amount of time that they’re eating, or 14-10, or you get the idea, right? There are multiple variations. But interestingly, when someone starts a keto diet, they often find themselves naturally falling into like a time restricted eating pattern. And that’s because a keto diet tends to be very satiating and addresses hunger very well. But that doesn’t mean intermittent fasting has to be part of ketogenic therapy. And exactly where the border is, you know, the 14-10, 16-8, whatever, is undefined. And of course, you also wanna make sure you leave yourself enough of a window where you can make sure you get adequate nutrition, adequate calories, adequate nutrients, and definitely adequate protein. Because if you do too large of a fasting window, sometimes people struggle to get the amount of protein they need or to get adequate nutrition and calories, so definitely pay attention to that.
Potential benefits of intermittent fasting
But here are a few benefits that fasting can help with. So the first is, it can raise ketone levels. And since ketogenic therapy often has a goal ketone level in mind, fasting can sometimes help someone achieve that level. And fasting can also help improve metabolic health, treat insulin resistance, and can help with weight loss if that’s a goal.
Potential risks of intermittent fasting
But fasting isn’t perfect. It’s a tool that may be right for some and may not be right for others. If someone is trying fasting, they need to pay attention to, if their hunger and cravings increase, or if they feel the need to overeat to make up for lost calories, or if their mental health declines during a prolonged period without food. All of those are possible responses. And that’s what makes fasting so individualized. So many people do great with it, right? But others may struggle. And sometimes trying it is the only way to really find out which camp someone’s in. And just because it starts one way, though, doesn’t mean it will always be that way, right? Someone may struggle in the beginning. Someone may start out, kind of struggling a little bit, but as keto adaptation or metabolic health improves, that person may find the ability to fast improves. But again, that’s another reason why we recommend working with an experienced practitioner, someone who has experience or training with intermittent fasting. It could be a coach, a dietician, a therapist, a physician, or other trained expert to help design a plan, measure its effect, and troubleshoot any challenges.
Should you try intermittent fasting?
So should intermittent fasting be part of your ketogenic therapy? Well, consider the points in this video and discuss it with your provider to see if it could be a tool to help you achieve your health goals. But the key is always understanding what your goal is, how intermittent fasting may play into that, and how you measure its response, and how to look for potential complications. Now, as always, this is not medical advice. We’re not establishing a provider-patient relationship or giving any individual or group healthcare advice. Any changes should be done with your healthcare team and your healthcare provider. Alright, thanks a lot. We’ll see you here next time at Metabolic Mind, a nonprofit initiative of Baszucki Group.
