New Diet on the Block: Keto Diet, Dogs & Cancer

After discovering the ketogenic diet while watching an old movie (.... First Do No Harm) on a little boy who suffered from epilepsy and receiving medication that actually exceberated his condition till he became fatally ill. His mum discovered a doctor who was treating epilepsy in the 1970s with a keto diet, and within a day or two on that diet he improved incredibly and eventually healed completely.

I was so amazed at the diet so I did a little research and was fascinated how it worked.

In a nutshell carbs, starches, sugars are literally toxic in a compromised immune system. They create widespread inflammation in cells and organs including the brain. And unknown to most of us, sugar feeds cancer cells which helps it spread like wild fire.

So when our baby Zeus was diagnosed with cancer of the lymph nodes, we were devastated.

At that moment I told my daughter we can fix this with the keto diet.

My youngest daughter was my finest example of this, when all the specialists failed to find out what was destroying her glands (her thyroid and pituitary) and I was staring at a reflection of what used to be my daughter, I didn't recognize this stranger who was an empty shell of my precious child.

I refused to accept her declining mental and physical health, so I prayed and prayed and researched and to my amazement I found out she was gluten intolerant.

Immediately on 9th February 2011, I put her on the diet and never looked back.

So with Zeus, I used whatever information I had picked up from the keto diet with a bit of ayurvedic diet and intermittent fasting, I created a synergy which consisted of freshly cooked chicken or meat with lots of spinach or kale or broccoli with lots of turmeric and fresh ginger and lots of ghee or butter.

According to ayurveda food must be eaten within 3 hours of cooking because the energy is still high and in a compromised immune system the body's energy is so low to digest raw foods before it has to be cooked, not over cooked, basically stir fried.

Ginger is added to increase digestive enzymes and heat the fire ,the stove of the body, to sort of create the right conditions for the body to absorb nutrients and also breakdown the food.

Turmeric is added to help with inflammation and speeding up the healing process.

I also supplemented his diet with:

• Omega 6 & 9

• Magnesium and potasium

• Calcium

By Ishani Singh, Director & Co-founder of Summerveld Hound Resort Rescue Sanctuary

How Does The Diet Work?

Healthy cells can use either carbohydrates or fats to produce energy. If a diet is mostly carbs (like kibble and some of the less expensive freeze-dried diets) … the body does one of two things. It converts the carbohydrates to glucose for fuel … or stores the glucose in the liver as glycogen.

But if a diet mainly provides fat – and glycogen stores are low – the body converts that fat into ketones. Ketones are short-chain fatty acids that the body then uses to produce energy.

This is a natural process that induces a metabolic state called ketosis. Don’t confuse this term with life-threatening ketoacidosis sometimes experienced by diabetics. In periods of famine or fasting, ketosis also ensures survival and body functions.

Ketogenic Diet Research

Over the past decades, ketosis research has expanded. As well as drug-resistant epilepsy … studies now explore metabolic diseases like Alzheimer’s, obesity and cancer.

German biochemist Otto Warburg discovered that most cancer cells have altered energy metabolism. They can’t use fat as a source of energy … because they use anaerobic fermentation processes rather than oxygen-based cell respiration.

In 2013, Dr Thomas Seyfried showed that cancer is a metabolic dysfunction of mitochondria … (energy-producing organelles in cells) … triggered by many toxins.

This means that if cancer cells don’t get glucose from carbohydrates or glutamine from protein … they can’t survive and tumor progression slows. This is the reason for the moderate level of protein in ketogenic diets.

So … if the body runs primarily on ketones, it can affect tumor growth. Studies of mice on a ketogenic diet (plus hyperbaric oxygen treatments – HBOT) … show a significant reduction in tumor growth.

One of my own patients with a malignant tumor on his tongue is on a ketogenic diet. He was given just a few weeks to live but has been stable … and doing well for the past nine months. Another dog with a big ulcerated anal gland tumor also surpassed all expectations.

The Answer To All Cancers?

We don’t know if keto diets are the answer to all cancers. Likely not, because there are many factors that play a role … including a dog’s overall health.

Some dogs may not be able to digest and tolerate a high-fat diet. Keto is very doable, but there’s a bit of work … and trial and error … in the beginning. You also need to buy a glucose and ketone meter to measure both regularly … to make sure your dog is in ketosis.

What Other Benefits Are There?

A ketogenic diet for dogs may have other benefits. In a recent study of 21 epileptic dogs on a keto diet, seven had a 50% reduction in seizure frequency … and three of them became seizure-free.

Several other health benefits can make this diet attractive, even for a healthy dog:

• Reduced inflammation

• Improved fat burning and weight loss

• Blood sugar balancing, especially for diabetic animals

• Improves insulin sensitivity

• Suppresses hunger hormone ghrelin

• Fewer cravings

• Increased and longer-lasting energy

• Improve liver health

• Anti-aging

• Less risk of chronic diseases

• Help with epilepsy and neurodegenerative disorders

• Mitochondrial biogenesis (meaning increased production of mitochondria)

Source: Dogs Naturally Magazine