Family Health Lab

Incredible Power of Keto Diet for Mental Health with Jan Ellison Baszucki


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The powerful impact a Keto Diet can have on mental health conditions, with President of the Baszucki Group, Jan Ellison Baszucki.  

Claire McDonnell Liu, Nutrition Researcher and Family Health Lab podcast host, in conversation with Jan Ellison Baszucki.


Jan shares her son Matt Baszucki's mental ill health journey. At aged only 17 Matt endured a breakdown, with sleeplessness, delusions and mania, and was ultimately diagnosed as suffering with bi-polar.


Over five years Matt's journey involved in-patient treatments, emergency hospitalisations, many different drug protocols, specialists, holistic and innovative therapies.  Eventually Jan uncovered information on the positive impact a Ketogenic Diet may have for mental ill health conditions.

The Baszucki family credit Matt's Keto with an incredible shift in his mental health, allowing Matt to return fully to his personality and full cognitive function -"It's like he doesn't have a mental illness at all now".  

Jan has been instrumental in forming Metabolic Mind, steering her Baszucki Group philanthropic foundation towards furthering research into metabolic health therapies for mental illness, whilst helping to empower clinicians and families with information and resources to transform mental health options for sufferers.   

00:59 Jan's own Keto diet experience
02:11 Changing from low fat foods, thanks to Nina Teicholz book The Big Fat Surprise  
03:22 Matt Baszucki's struggle with bipolar
7:23 Working with Dr Chris Palmer to begin a Keto Diet
7:30 Adapting an epilepsy Modified Atkins Diet, supported by Denise Potter Dietician for The Charlie Foundation
08:15 When Jan knew things were improving for Matt 
9:00 Matt's commitment to his lifestyle measures to support his mental health: meditation, sleep routine, exercise, alcohol-free, along side his whole foods ketogencic diet. 
11.20 Measuring and tracking Matt's ketones and macronutrients to ensure consistently in ketosis 
13:34 Getting Matt back - to full independence, executive funcion getting his brain to work fully
14:50 Trying over 29 medications, working with 40+ specialists, and trying multiple therapies - most of which didn't work
17:00 Finding out about a Keto Diet by accident, not from the professionals treating ther son
20:02 Angry families channelling hope for the world with research into metabolic dietary therapies 
22:36 A diet can resolve serious mental ill health - astonishing results from trials for keto for schitzophrenia, brain based disorders, pschiatry, neurology  24:53 Beginnings of the Baszucki Group mental health research and advocacy work: funding Dr Iain Campbell's bipolar trials in Scotland, supporting Dr Georgia Ede's metabolic therapy research  
25:45 How the floating of David Baszucki's company, Roblox, allowed the Baszucki family to help fund mental health research
26:38 Jeff Volek's Ohio State University Ketogenic diet trial for depression  
27:20 Prof Zoltan Sarnyai’s pilot trial into Ketogenic diet schizophrenia at James Cook University, Australia.
28:16 Public education to transform clinical care with Bret Scher, formerly of Diet Doctor, is leading the Metabolic Mind YouTube Chanel, podcast and website as Director  Case studies and trials in other mental health areas, including: Anorexia, ADHD, PTSD, Alcoholism, Depression, and Alcoholism


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Family Health LabBy Claire McDonnell Liu