of guts, brains, and health

Day Two at the Metabolic Health Summit

Last week I wrote about the great time I had playing author at MHS in Florida. Let’s return to the scene with some more takeaways from the conference…

bugs n brains

The morning session Friday was all about metabolic therapies for neurological disorders, so I made sure to wake up bright n’ early. It kicked off with an interesting talk by Abbi Hernandez, PhD, about the gut-brain axis — that is, the connection between the microbes in your intestines and the way your brain works.

Among the many findings she shared, her lab has shown that a ketogenic diet improves cognitive performance in aged rats. The diet also changes the rats’ microbiome, increasing some bugs and decreasing others. Coincidence? Probably not. I also learned that gut changes can be seen in humans with Alzheimer’s Disease, and the ketogenic diet has been shown to reverse these changes.

image credit: abbi hernandez, phd

ketosis in a bottle?

The talk of cognitive function continued with a presentation by Kaja Falkenhain, PhD. In it she explored whether exogenous ketones (that is, supplements like these from Audacious Nutrition) might be helpful in fighting age-related memory loss and cognitive decline. It’s still early days for this research, but there are definitely some exciting possibilities!

I’m not affiliated with Audacious, but they were a sponsor of the conference, and I got to meet their founder Csilla Ari D’Agostino, PhD and chat with her a bit. I’ve verified through testing that their Ketostart drink mix, which contains 10g of the ketone BHB, raises my blood ketone levels by about 05.-1.0 mmol/L. Good to know, since the supplement industry is basically the wild west. (See this article on Diet Doctor to read about just how bad it is out there.)

keto for grown-ups

Next, we moved from research into practice. Kelly Faltersack, RDN from the University of Wisconsin gave us a peek into how her clinic uses the ketogenic diet in adults with epilepsy. I always appreciate when people address this topic, because there’s an erroneous belief out there that the diet only works on children with seizures. In fact, she shared, the very first trial of the ketogenic diet, over 100 years ago, included adults as well as children.

The most eye-opening slide in her presentation, though, was this one:

Even though awareness of the ketogenic diet is growing all the time, it’s clear that we still have work to do. Shocking, when you think about it: a treatment that can help over 50% of patients — just as effective, in fact, as as any drug on the market — is totally unavailable in nearly half the states in the US. Imagine if that were true of any other medical intervention — be it a medication or surgery. People would be up in arms!

Faltersack did a second presentation that afternoon, alongside another registered dietician, Franziska Spritzler. Spritzler uses the ketogenic diet with her clients to battle metabolic conditions, such as type 2 diabetes. It was interesting to compare and contrast how they each use this therapy in the clinic, and as someone who both lives with epilepsy and could stand to lose a few pounds, I got some useful tips. The final word? Flexibility, Individualization, and Sustainability.

the o.g.

After Kelly’s talk, I popped over to the other ballroom, where Jeff Volek, PhD, one of the OG’s of the Low-Carb world, was speaking about ketosis and athletic performance. Most of what he presented was way over my head, to be honest, but the standing-room only crowd was a testament to Volek’s influence on the field. During the Q&A, Stephen Phinney, PhD — Volek’s co-author on the seminal book The Art and Science of Low-Carbohydrate Living — approached the mic to ask a question, and I swear, everyone in the room just sat in awe.

My brain was pretty much stuffed after that, so I went off in search of a quiet corner where I could sit a minute and digest all this new knowledge. I eventually found a comfy chair near the check-in area, where I sunk in and reviewed the program to plan my afternoon. But it wasn’t long until my thoughts were interrupted by a deep, booming, familiar voice talking to a staffer behind me.

k twice

I jumped to my feet and turned around. “Dr. K!” I shouted, running up and pretty near tackling Dr. Kwadwo Kyeremanteng, author of Unapologetic Leadership and the human tour de force behind

Solving Healthcare Media with Dr. Kwadwo Kyeremanteng

, a Substack and podcast that I never miss.

In full fanboy mode, I told Dr. Kyeremanteng (K-Twice, as he’s also known) that I love his work, that I was a member of the beta group for his 28-Day Men’s Health Challenge, that I think he’s an amazing speaker and all-around swell guy.

I was relieved when his hesitant smile grew wide, and he said, “We’re going to do something together. I’m not sure what, but we’re gonna make something happen.” I was so psyched. Dr. K is all about bringing smart, effective, and equitable reform to the healthcare system — “changing the boogie,” as he says, “because the boogie’s gotta change.” The idea of collaborating with him is hugely motivating — watch this space to see where it leads!

changing the boogie with dr. k

There were lots of other great talks that day, including a symposium on dietary therapy for cancer, and a poster session where a number of PhD candidates — the next generation of Phinneys and Voleks — shared the research they are working on. Lots of great information, lots of great connections, and lots of fuel for my keto mojo (Oh, and thanks to Keto Mojo, another sponsor of the event, for letting me test my ketones an inordinate number of times throughout the weekend).

I’ll wrap up this series next week. Stay tuned!