Well Alex continues to surprise us. Tonight I got Chinese carry out. At the conclusion of the meal I pull out the fortune cookies. Lo and behold Alex reaches over, cracks one open and eats it. 21 years he has never eaten a fortune cookie.
Then he grabs another and another. Out of fortune cookies Marycke finds a serving of Apple Jacks and another of Lucky Charms. Wow neat to see him eat!
Bummer, time for bed and he has a seizure. Maybe it was not good for him to eat. From Biblical times to the present, epilepsy has been a disease shrouded in mysticism and fear. Seizures, which are now known to be a neurophysiological phenomenon, are the defining characteristic of epilepsy.
It has long been known that starvation is an effective, if impractical means of controlling seizures. There is even a reference in the Bible to starvation controlling "fits." Mark 6:29 "cured by fasting and prayer." The first scientific study of fasting as a treatment for epilepsy was conducted in France in 1910. The researchers concluded that seizures were improved by absolute starvation.
During starvation, the body first burns all of its glycogen. It then begins to burn body fat and protein for the specific purpose of supplying the brain with glucose. As fasting continues, the body shifts into a state known as ketosis. The brain begins to use ketones from the metabolism of fats as energy rather than glucose. This shift in metabolism also correlates with a reduction in seizure activity.
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