Metabolic Mind

There are many biases both for and against a keto diet. At Metabolic Mind, an organization focused on ketogenic therapy for psychiatric conditions like bipolar, schizophrenia, and chronic depression, we acknowledge our own pro-keto bias; however, we also are proactive about taking a measured approach, grounding our understanding and content in scientific evidence. Often, an anti-keto bias may be p...

Dave Feldman is a citizen scientist and founder of Citizen Science Foundation. In this interview, he sits down with us to discuss the success of the 2024 Collaborative Science (CoSci) Conference and how one community is helping make research better. All proceeds from this year’s CoSci Conference are being used to help fund further research for lean mass hyper-responders. This year’s events include...

Ketogenic therapy can be a powerful intervention for many people with mental illness, including those with serious conditions like bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and major depression. Initial data indicates that individual response to ketogenic therapy for mental health may vary. Research is ongoing and needs to further investigate underlying mechanisms and how metabolism impacts brain function i...

Ketogenic therapy, commonly in the form of a keto diet, is often known for having more “side benefits” than “side effects.” However, it is a powerful medical intervention and, as such, not entirely without risks. In some instances, individuals transitioning onto a keto diet to treat a mental health condition, like bipolar or schizophrenia, can experience symptoms of hypomania. There are many strat...

Research indicates that following a keto diet can be an effective form of metabolic treatment for depression, particularly atypical and treatment-resistant forms. Dr. Erin Bellamy has seen ketogenic therapy’s success through her online program Integrative Ketogenic Research and Therapies (ikrt.org), which helps patients implement a keto diet for mental health conditions and effectively coordinate...

Metabolic dysfunction is the root cause of most noncommunicable diseases, including cancer, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, neurodegenerative diseases, like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, and mental health conditions. Luckily, simple, practical strategies can improve insulin sensitivity and overall metabolic health, including controlling carbs, eating whole foods rich in protein and fat, and doing r...

DescreiptionIndividuals with bipolar disorder are at an increased risk for heart attack, stroke, diabetes, and obesity, often resulting in a decreased lifespan. Clinicians must address this critical issue. There is a complicated, interconnected set of factors driving this correlation, including: medications that increase cardiometabolic burden, symptoms of the illness itself, as well genetic facto...

Dr. Uma Naidoo founded and directs the first US hospital-based nutritional psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Naidoo’s work focuses on empowering individuals with dietary strategies that improve overall mental health and conditions like ADHD, anxiety, depression and OCD. She is a leading nutritional psychiatrist on the faculty at Harvard Medical School– she also brings unique flair...

GLP 1 medications, like Wegovy and Ozempic, might serve a purpose as a bridge treatment that enables patients to make positive lifestyle changes, such as implementing a ketogenic diet. This video is the last in our series exploring the potential use of GLP1 medications in psychiatry. While clinical evidence shows benefits for some patients using these medications, helping with both metabolic disea...

The Stanford Twin Study has made headlines suggesting that vegan diets are healthier than omnivore diets, and we would likely all benefit from a more plant-based diet. The problem is that the conclusions are misleading, and the study doesn't actually show that. The true conclusion from this study is that among high carb diets, after eight weeks, those on a vegan diet ate fewer calories, lost m...

Do we all have to worry that LDL causes heart disease, or could certain people, like low-carb "lean mass hyper responders" have less concern about LDL and heart risk? A new study from Dave Feldman and Dr. Matt Budoff suggests markedly elevated LDL in the setting of metabolic health and ketosis may not contribute to cardiac plaque and heart disease. While these data are not conclusive, th...

At Metabolic Mind, we often focus on ketogenic therapy as a treatment for severe mental illnesses like bipolar, schizophrenia, and depression. But it’s important to realize that a keto diet can also be a powerful preventative medicine to protect and optimize brain function. Dr. Susan Masino, a professor of neuroscience and psychology at Trinity College and the Charles Bullard Fellow in forest rese...

Is the key to optimizing physical and mental health eating so-called superfoods like dark chocolate, red wine and blueberries? Dr. Georgia Ede, a Harvard-trained psychiatrist and metabolic psychiatry pioneer, shares counter-evidence to mainstream views on the optimal human diet. In this interview, she discusses nourishing the brain by eating the right foods, protecting it by staying away from the...

Dr. Megan Kirk Chang, Senior Researcher of Medical Science at the University of Oxford, discusses her upcoming trials looking at nutritional interventions: one focuses on ketosis for treatment-resistant depression, and the other will investigate whether the keto diet is as effective as the Mediterranean diet for individuals at risk for developing Alzheimer’s. She has a background in cognitive beha...

GLP1 medications like Wegovy and Ozempic can help with weight loss but may also be able to help with psychiatric symptoms from depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety, and more. But are GLP1s safe in psychiatry, and how do they compare to nutritional interventions like a ketogenic diet to treat mental health disorders? Dr. Roger McIntrye, a world-renowned psychiatrist and researcher, joins Metabolic...

Ketogenic diets are emerging as an exciting new alternative treatment for bipolar disorder and other psychiatric conditions. Many people may see remission of their psychiatric symptoms and may be able to reduce or eliminate their intake of psychiatric medications. Dr. Iain Campbell, a researcher who lives with Bipolar II, collected survey data from over 100 individuals treating their bipolar disor...

Ben Rolnik lived with depression, thinking often about suicide, and even when he was doing well, he never knew if his day would get upended by depressive symptoms. That all changed when he found ketogenic therapy, and Ben has now put his depression symptoms into remission. Ben shares his dramatic story but also discusses his unique position as the Director of Stanford's Healthcare Innovation L...

GLP1 agonist weight loss medications Wegovy and Ozempic have become popular medications for overweight and obesity and are also increasingly being used in psychiatry to target symptoms of depression and anxiety. But are Wegovy and Ozempic safe to use in psychiatry? University of Toronto psychiatrist and researcher Dr. Rodrigo Mansur discusses the research supporting the use of GLP1 agonist weight...

Can you successfully lose weight that you’ve gained from antipsychotics and other psychiatric medications for bipolar disorder, depression, schizophrenia, and other mental health disorders? Dr. Matthew Bernstein faces this question daily in his psychiatric practice and believes a combination of ketogenic therapy and medications like Wegovy or Ozempic may lead to sustained weight loss - as long as...

Hannah Warren treated her bipolar disorder and put it into remission with metabolic therapies, including a keto diet. Her symptoms of psychosis and mania have disappeared, and she attributes it to a combination of metabolic interventions, including exercise, meditation, fasting, and, most importantly, ketogenic therapy, the cornerstone intervention key to treating her psychiatric symptoms and rest...

According to Harvard psychiatrist Dr. Chris Palmer and the Brain Energy theory, mitochondria play a crucial role in mental health and in psychiatric conditions like bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, and others. But the good news is that recognizing the importance of mitochondria and metabolic health can help us see psychiatric illness in a whole new way and may offer novel, mor...

Now more than ever, we need to know how to improve our metabolic health. Disrupted metabolism, so-called metabolic dysfunction, is a dangerous condition that has been associated with numerous medical conditions, including mental illness, dementia, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and more. But what do metabolism and metabolic dysfunction mean, and what can we do to improve our metabolic health? Th...

Emerging evidence indicates that therapeutic ketosis, often from a ketogenic diet, can help treat mental illnesses such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, anorexia, and others. But some may question if nutritional ketosis is safe, especially considering some associate ketosis with the dangerous medical condition ketoacidosis. This podcast discusses how ketosis is a safe and natural ph...

Early evidence indicates that ketogenic therapy is a safe and effective treatment for Alzheimer’s Disease and other forms of dementia. Dr. Stephen Cunnane has been part of this field for decades and has seen the research take shape. But he’s also seen very slow adoption in clinical practice. Dr. Cunnane shares his journey through this field, why he got started with ketone research, how ketogenic t...

Metabolic neurology is a growing field focusing on the connection between metabolic and neurologic health, and encompasses neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, other types of dementia, and more. Dr. Matthew Phillips is leading the way as a clinician and researcher exploring the use of metabolic therapies, like intermittent fasting and nutritional ketosis to help treat...