Metabolic Aspects of Mental Health

Can Ketosis Prevent or Treat Depression and Anxiety?

I Care Deeply About This Question Based on My Research and Personal Experiences, and Here’s What I Can Offer as a Summary Chapter of My Book Ketosis + BDNF: The Healing Molecules That Saved My Life.

Image cover page of Ketosis + BDNF: The Healing Molecules That Saved My Life

This story is a summary chapter of my recent book Ketosis + BDNF: The Healing Molecules That Saved My Life.

Millions of people struggle with mental health challenges every day. Two of the most common are depression and anxiety. I faced both in my younger years, so I have a deep understanding, empathy, and compassion for how tough they can be.

For a time, I even experienced anhedonia, a flat, joyless feeling where nothing seems enjoyable. It gave me a glimpse into just how debilitating depression could be. Depression goes beyond sadness. It can strip away hope, and it’s one of the strongest risk factors for suicide.

In my twenties, I lived with anxiety that felt like a constant storm. By my early thirties, I experienced episodes of mild depression, worsened by my poor eating regimen, including the high-carbohydrate intake, lack of biovailable proteins from plants only, and…