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Not long after upending federal diet guidelines in order to prioritize “real food” on our plates, United States Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has offered a new piece of questionable advice. During a tour to promote these dietary recommendations, Kennedy recently claimed that a keto diet can cure schizophrenia—an assertion that experts have quickly thrown cold water on.
The ketogenic diet promotes fat-rich meals and low amounts of carbohydrates. While keto eating has skyrocketed in popularity in recent years—it ranked the most Googled diet in the U.S. in 2020—it was initially designed in the early 20th century for patients with epilepsy. More recent studies have confirmed that the diet is effective for certain types of epilepsy because it can control seizures.
Meanwhile, we have much less evidence for its impacts on symptoms of schizophrenia. So far, small studies have offered some early evidence that ketogenic diets may help people with the condition.
“There is currently no credible evidence that ketogenic diets cure schizophrenia,” Mark Olfson, a psychiatrist at Columbia University, told The New York Times.
Read more: “Eat Like a Neanderthal”
Kennedy also proclaimed that the diet can essentially cure bipolar disorder, according to studies he recently read. But as with schizophrenia, keto’s impacts on bipolar disorder have only been examined in limited numbers of patients so far.
Preliminary findings have also hinted that a keto diet could ease symptoms of depression. It may offer “small antidepressant benefits” for people who don’t respond to medication, according to a recently published JAMA Psychiatry paper. But this work is in the early stages as well and remains far from conclusive.
Scientists are seeking new therapies for these types of conditions because anti-psychotic drugs come with some major limitations. Many patients stop taking such drugs over time due to side effects, which include weight gain, drowsiness, and loss of motivation.
Scientists think that the ketogenic diet might help treat these conditions in a whole host of ways. For one, it can reduce inflammation in the brain, which is linked to anxiety, depression, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder. It may also contribute to the stability of one’s neural networks, a key component of mental health.
Right now, several randomized controlled trials—the gold standard in medical research—are in the works to learn whether keto diets can work as effective treatments for bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and other mental health conditions.
While RFK Jr. touted the diet as a cure, researchers have emphasized that it should supplement existing treatments for now. Shebani Sethi, a psychiatrist and obesity specialist at Stanford University, noted that she harnesses this diet as “one powerful therapeutic metabolic tool among many.” 
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Lead image: zuzyusa / Pixabay
