Google Search: “Is The Use Of The Ketogenic Diet To Treat Mental Illness Scientifically Valid?”

Posted on August 18, 2025 by Tom Wade MD

Today, I review the results of a Google Search: “Is the use of the ketogenic diet to treat mental illness scientifically valid?”

This Google Search was conducted on 8-18-2025.

All that follows is from the above web page search.

AI Overview
Based on current scientific research, the use of a ketogenic diet to treat mental illness is an emerging and promising area of investigation, but it requires careful consideration and further research
Current scientific standing
  • Promising early evidence: A growing body of preclinical research (animal studies) and pilot clinical trials suggest that ketogenic diets may have a positive impact on various psychiatric conditions like depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder. Stanford Medicine researchers, for example, found that a ketogenic diet significantly improved psychiatric symptoms in a pilot study involving adults with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.
  • Potential mechanisms: The observed benefits may be linked to the ketogenic diet’s impact on several brain-related factors:
    • Brain Energy Metabolism: Ketosis provides an alternative fuel source (ketone bodies) to glucose, potentially improving brain energy efficiency, especially in conditions where glucose metabolism is impaired.
    • Neurotransmitter Balance: Ketogenic diets may influence the balance of inhibitory (GABA) and excitatory (glutamate) neurotransmitters in the brain, potentially reducing neuronal excitability and stabilizing brain networks.
    • Neuroinflammation and Oxidative Stress: Ketone bodies have demonstrated anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, potentially benefiting conditions associated with neuroinflammation and oxidative stress.
    • Metabolic Health: Many mental illnesses are comorbid with metabolic dysfunction like insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome. Ketogenic diets can improve these metabolic markers, which may indirectly benefit mental health outcomes.
Limitations and considerations
  • Early Stages of Research: While promising, the current evidence is primarily based on animal studies, case reports, and small pilot trials, which have limitations in generalizability and establishing long-term effects and safety.
  • Need for Rigorous Research: Larger, well-designed randomized controlled trials are crucial to confirm efficacy, identify specific populations who might benefit most, determine optimal dietary approaches, and characterize potential long-term adverse effects.
  • Potential Risks and Side Effects: Like any significant dietary change, the ketogenic diet can have potential side effects during the adaptation phase (“keto flu”) and potential long-term risks if not carefully managed. These can include electrolyte imbalances, constipation, and potentially affecting bone health or liver function in some individuals.
  • Requires Medical Guidance: Ketogenic diets are a serious intervention and require careful planning, monitoring, and individualized adjustments, ideally under the supervision of a physician and a registered dietitian, particularly for individuals with pre-existing medical conditions or those taking medications that might interact with the diet.
In Conclusion
The use of a ketogenic diet as a potential treatment or adjunctive therapy for mental illness is a rapidly developing field with encouraging preliminary findings. However, it’s essential to emphasize that the ketogenic diet is not a replacement for conventional psychiatric treatment. More extensive and rigorous research is needed before it can be widely recommended. Individuals interested in exploring this approach should do so in close collaboration with their healthcare providers to determine if it is appropriate and safe for their specific circumstances.

List of websites linked to on the above webpage.

  • Ketogenic Diet Intervention on Metabolic and Psychiatric …
    Highlights * • Ketogenic diet therapy resulted in metabolic syndrome reversal in this cohort of serious mental illness. * Participants with schizophrenia showed…
    ScienceDirect.com
  • Stanford Medicine expert shares five key insights on keto …
    Apr 23, 2025 — Here are five things Sethi wants you to know about where the science stands on ketogenic therapy: * Keto therapy has been used to treat neurological disorders f…
    Stanford Report
  • Ketogenic Therapy in Serious Mental Illness: Emerging …
    Jun 23, 2020 — The effect of ketogenic diet was investigated on hippocampal P20/N40 gating in DBA/2 mice, a translational endophenotype that mirrors inhibitory deficits in P50…
    National Institutes of Health (NIH) | (.gov)
  • Complete remission of depression and anxiety using a …
    May 14, 2024 — Abstract * Background. There is little data that describe the use of ketogenic metabolic therapy to achieve full remission of major depression and generalized a…
    National Institutes of Health (NIH) | (.gov)
This entry was posted in Google Search, Ketogenic Diet For The Treatment Of Mental Health Disorders. Bookmark the permalink.