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Ketogenic therapies in Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, and mild cognitive impairment: An integrative review.

Applied nursing research : ANR
December 1, 2023
Susan Price et al. (2 authors)
ReviewJournal ArticleHuman Study
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to evaluate the efficacy of ketogenic therapies, including coconut oil supplementation, in improving cognitive and motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, and mild cognitive impairment.

Results Summary

Coconut oil was used as part of a Mediterranean diet supplementation and showed cognitive improvements, though results were variable and adherence was problematic. MCT supplements, including coconut oil, demonstrated cognitive benefits after 6 months of use.

Population

Patients with Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, and mild cognitive impairment.

Effective Dosage

Not specified

Duration

6 months for MCT supplements

Interactions

None mentioned

Extracted Claims (9)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
ketogenic therapies
decrease
seizure reduction
epilepsy
-
have shown benefit for seizure reduction
#1
ketogenic diet
increase
motor function
Parkinson's disease (PD)
-
did show significant improvement
#2
ketogenic diet
increase
cognition
MCI and AD groups
-
showed a non-significant trend towards improvement
#3
Mediterranean diet
increase
cognitive measures
MCI and AD groups
-
showed statistically significant improvements
#4
modified Adkins diet
increase
cognitive measures
MCI and AD groups
-
showed statistically significant improvements
#5
low-carbohydrate diet
increase
cognitive measures
MCI and AD groups
-
showed statistically significant improvements
#6
Axona and AC-1202 compounds
no change
cognition
AD and MCI groups
-
showed no significant improvement
#7
Most MCT supplements
increase
cognition
AD and MCI groups
-
did show cognitive improvements
#8
ketogenic therapies
increase
symptom improvement
PD, AD, and MCI
-
have promise for symptom improvement
#9
Abstract

BACKGROUND: Ketogenic therapies have shown benefit for seizure reduction in epilepsy but their impact on other neurologic conditions is less known. In this literature review, the efficacy of ketogenic therapies were assessed in Parkinson's disease (PD), Alzheimer's disease (AD), and mild cognitive impairment (MCI). METHODS: A literature search was conducted using PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar focusing on ketogenic therapies in PD, AD, and MCI. RESULTS: A total of 2565 records were identified with a total of 15 studies (3 for PD and 12 for MCI/AD) meeting criteria for analysis. The ketogenic diet was used in all the PD studies and did show significant improvement in motor function either through vocal quality, gait, freezing, tremor, and/or balance. A variety of ketogenic therapies were utilized in the MCI and AD groups including a ketogenic diet, low-carbohydrate diet, modified Adkins diet, Mediterranean diet with coconut oil supplementation, a ketogenic diet with a ketogenic medium chain triglyceride (kMCT) supplement, as well as ketogenic supplements including a ketogenic drink with kMCT, oral ketogenic compounds (Axona and AC-1202), and MCT oil or emulsion. The ketogenic diet independently showed a non-significant trend towards improvement in cognition. The Mediterranean diet, modified Adkins diet, and low-carbohydrate diet showed statistically significant improvements in some, although not all, of their cognitive measures. Use of ketogenic supplements, drinks, or compounds showed variable results in the AD and MCI groups. The Axona and AC-1202 compounds showed no significant improvement in cognition at the end of their respective 90-day trials. Most MCT supplements did show cognitive improvements, although only after 6 months of adherence. Adherence to the intervention was problematic in most of the diet studies. CONCLUSION: Ketogenic therapies have promise in PD, AD, and MCI for symptom improvement although larger studies are needed to support their implementation in clinical practice.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
HumansAlzheimer DiseaseParkinson DiseaseCognitive DysfunctionCognitionDiet, KetogenicKetone Bodies
Study Links
Quality Scores
SafetyNot Assessed
Efficacy70/10
Quality75/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations5
Citations/Year2.5
Relative Citation Ratio1.37
NIH Percentile61.8%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.25
Weight Score2.58
Normalized Score0.63
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