FoundMyFitness · 2022-04-28 · Rhonda Patrick (host), Dominic D'Agostino
Dr. Dominic D'Agostino on Developing a Well-Designed Ketogenic Diet and Harnessing Its Benefits
85 research-tied claims examined: 1 contradicted 5 overstated 6 context 60 supported 1 corroborated online 12 unverified
12 No source found (not proven false)
Abruptly starting a ketogenic diet without calorie restriction can cause sleep disruption, elevated triglycerides, and a rapid spike in LDL.
"If you were to abruptly start the ketogenic diet, you're more likely to get side effects and you're more likely to get things like sleep disruption, lipid abnormalities, elevated triglycerides, you get a quick spike in LDL. This can occur if you rapidly start the ketogenic diet, especially in the context of not calorie restricting." (said at 0:11:20)
No published record matching the claim that abruptly starting a ketogenic diet without calorie restriction causes sleep disruption, elevated triglycerides, and a rapid spike in LDL was located; this does not prove the claim false.
A rapid spike in blood ketones triggers a counter-regulatory release of insulin, which can suppress endogenous ketone production.
"A very rapid spike in ketones contributes to a release in insulin... The rapid elevation of ketones can produce a counter-regulatory effect, which is a release in insulin, and then that can shut down your own natural ketone production." (said at 0:41:10)
No published record matching the claim that a rapid spike in blood ketones triggers a counter-regulatory release of insulin that suppresses endogenous ketone production was located; this does not prove the claim false.
When blood ketones are significantly elevated, individuals can remain asymptomatic during severe hypoglycemia that would otherwise cause hypoglycemic shock.
"There have been cases where you could produce a hypoglycemic shock that would be fatal—otherwise fatal—but if your ketones are elevated, you're asymptomatic for hypoglycemia." (said at 0:47:22)
No published record matching the claim that individuals with elevated blood ketones can remain asymptomatic during severe hypoglycemia that would otherwise cause hypoglycemic shock was located; this does not prove the claim false.
Blood pH drops and metabolic acidosis can occur when blood ketone levels rise above approximately 3 millimolar.
"especially if ketones get high, you do get a metabolic acidosis that you can We see pH drop in our animals. So we measure like, you know, our pH levels and blood gases and things like that, and we see that the pH level will drop typically when the ketones get above about 3 millimolar." (said at 0:54:26)
No published record matching the claim that blood pH drops and metabolic acidosis occurs when ketone levels rise above approximately 3 millimolar was located; this does not prove the claim false.
Studies have shown that the actual concentration of vitamin D3 in commercial store-bought supplements varies widely from the labeled dose, sometimes containing only 400 IU when labeled as 4,000 IU.
"there's been a variety of studies now over the years showing if you take if you just randomly take different vitamin D supplements off the shelves, like Walgreens, you know, in grocery stores, that the the actual concentration of vitamin D3 in each supplement varies so widely that you'll often get a supplement that says it's, you know, 4,000 IU, but it's more like 400." (said at 1:00:41)
No published record matching the specific claim that commercial store-bought vitamin D3 supplements vary so widely in concentration that a product labeled as 4,000 IU may contain as little as 400 IU was located; this does not prove the claim false.
Elevating circulating ketone levels reduces the liberation of alanine from skeletal muscle during stress and gluconeogenic states.
"alanine is like your main gluconeogenic amino acid that is liberated under conditions of stress, uh high cortisol, high gluconeogenesis, glucagon, things like that. We are going to liberate alanine as a gluconeogenic amino acid, it goes to the liver, we make glucose, and elevating ketones seems to reduce that" (said at 1:09:32)
No published record matching the claim that elevating circulating ketone levels reduces the liberation of alanine from skeletal muscle during stress and gluconeogenic states was located; this does not prove the claim false.
C57BL/6 mice do not gain weight when eating large amounts of a ketogenic diet, whereas VM/Dk mice lose weight on a ketogenic diet compared to standard chow.
"the C57BL/6 mice will eat a ton of the ketogenic diet food and they don't gain weight, whereas other, depending upon the strain And then we have the VM/Dk mice that we use for our cancer research, and they tend to It corrects their eating behavior, meaning that if you give them the standard diet ad libitum, they just gain weight like a couch potato. But a ketogenic diet, they will lose weight and everything improves." (said at 1:33:25)
No published record matching the claim regarding strain-dependent body weight responses of C57BL/6 and VM/Dk mice fed ad libitum ketogenic diets was located; this does not prove the claim false.
Adult epilepsy patients who have breakthrough seizures while on a ketogenic diet can regain seizure control by implementing time-restricted feeding at the same caloric intake.
"because I'm communicating with adults that have epilepsy and they're following a ketogenic diet, they break through seizures, but then they take the same diet, same calories, and then do intermittent—and this is not promoted in the world of epilepsy, but when they take their ketogenic diet where they're having breakthrough seizures, and they implement time-restricted feeding, then they get seizure control again." (said at 1:33:55)
No published clinical trial or observational study matching the claim—that adult epilepsy patients experiencing breakthrough seizures while on a ketogenic diet can regain seizure control by implementing time-restricted feeding at the same caloric intake—was located; this does not prove the claim false. Published clinical research on intermittent fasting and time-restricted feeding in epilepsy remains preliminary, primarily investigating intermittent fasting protocols with or without medium-chain triglyceride supplementation as an alternative to classical ketogenic diets, or examining transient anticonvulsant effects in animal seizure models.
Fasting and ketogenic diets increase adenosine levels in the brain, and fasting can acutely increase cerebral blood flow by 30%.
"And we know that the ketogenic diet and exogenous ketones increase adenosine, and from our metabolomic data, adenosine... was like many-fold higher... So when you fast, or even when you go on a ketogenic diet—when you fast, blood flow to the brain can increase by 30%." (said at 1:47:25)
The claim contains two distinct assertions. First, the assertion that ketogenic diets increase brain adenosine levels is supported by preclinical research: animal studies and reviews demonstrate that ketogenic diets elevate extracellular adenosine and tissue adenosine content in the brain (PMID: 28427869, PMID: 32954218). Second, regarding the assertion that fasting acutely increases cerebral blood flow by 30%, no published record matching this specific quantitative finding was located; this does not prove the claim false. While ketogenic diets have been observed to increase regional cerebral blood flow in animal models of stroke/ischemia (PMID: 28427869), the specific claim of a 30% increase in cerebral blood flow due to fasting remains unverified in the published literature.
PI3-kinase inhibitors cause a counter-regulatory increase in insulin, which can be suppressed by a ketogenic diet to augment the efficacy of the drug.
"And even drugs like metabolic drugs like the PI3-kinase inhibitors are remarkably effective and promising, but they have a counter-regulatory effect at increasing insulin. So when we take these things, they can target tumor metabolism, but there's also an increase in insulin. And in the context of insulin suppression with a ketogenic diet, that can unmask and augment and greatly enhance PI3-kinase inhibitors." (said at 2:06:03)
No published record matching the claim was located; this does not prove the claim false.
Under high-pressure oxygen, cancer cells produce elevated levels of superoxide anions and reactive oxygen species due to defective mitochondria, leading to membrane lipid peroxidation and cell lysis.
"We're giving high-pressure oxygen, and the tumor cells were taking that oxygen, and because the cancer cells have defective mitochondria, they put out proportionally more superoxide anion, which then can be converted to, you know, hydrogen peroxide and more reactive intermediates like hydroxyl radical, and then that damages membrane lipids, and then you get rupturing of the cells." (said at 2:07:39)
No published record matching the claim that high-pressure oxygen causes cancer cells with defective mitochondria to produce elevated superoxide anions leading to membrane lipid peroxidation and cell lysis was located; this does not prove the claim false.
A Keto Brick bar provides 1,000 calories with approximately 90 grams of fat, 20 to 30 grams of protein, and almost no carbohydrates.
"The brick is 90 g of fat, like and I think 20 like maybe 30 g of protein, and like hardly any carbohydrates, and it's a 1,000-calorie brick." (said at 2:39:17)
No published scientific record evaluating or detailing the nutritional profile of a commercial product named "Keto Brick" was located; this does not prove the claim false.
Unverified means no publication matching the claim was located; it does not prove the claim false. Spotted an error? See the corrections policy - disputes from the people quoted are prioritized.