What foods should an epileptic eat?

We can modulate epilepsy and prevent crises with food and lifestyle modification. It is about following the following recommendations:

• The diet should be varied, avoiding diets without scientific basis.
• The consumption of alcohol should be prohibited and substituted with water, natural fruit juices and herbal teas.
• The use of stimulants such as tea or coffee is not contraindicated.
• A regular meal schedule should be followed.
• You have to maintain a regular night's rest.

What is ketosis?

A separate section deserves the. These diets are intended to reproduce in the individual the effects of fasting, is say, induce a state of ketosis. For this, a high fat content and a low sugar content are provided.

Eating large amounts of fat will lead to a incomplete oxidation of said fat, which will generate ketone bodies (acetone, acetoacetic acid and beta-hydroxy-butyric acid) in a sustained way; these ketone bodies appear to have an action of blocking the excitation of neurons.

Ketosis has made it possible to control the frequency and intensity of some childhood seizures that cannot be controlled with drugs. However, these diets must be done under medical supervision (neurologist and nutritionist) and, in fact, the beginning of the same should be done with the patient admitted to the hospital.

The ketogenic diet, like all medical interventions, is not without its Adverse effectsincluding: hypoglycaemia, nephrolithiasis, hypocalcaemia, infections, increased blood cholesterol and triglycerides, nausea and vomiting, constipation, changes in behavior, and weight loss. If the diet is effective, it is maintained for two years and then withdrawn.

Epilepsy medication and diet

For the control of epilepsy, the neurologist will indicate drug treatment. There are several types of drugs that can be indicated; your choice will depend on the type of crisis. Some of them have interactions with food. Some of these interactions are of clinical importance:

• The primidone and phenobarbital they increase the metabolism of vitamin D, while phenytoin also decreases the absorption of calcium in the intestine. It is usually limited to laboratory deficits, but the indication for vitamin D treatment should be considered if hypocalcemia occurs.
• The phenytoin and phenobarbital They stimulate the elimination of folic acid, which is why there may be a decrease in it in the blood. phenytoin impairs the absorption of folate. Although in general it is not indicated to give folic acid supplements, unless it has a clinical translation such as the appearance of anemia.
• The grapefruit juice reduces the metabolism of carbamazepine; consequently, grapefruit will increase blood levels of the drug.
• The phenytoin and valproic acid they reduce its absorption if taken with food, while diazepam increases its absorption if it is taken with food.

Other factors about epilepsy to consider

A seizure is nothing more than a sudden, high-intensity, synchronous electric discharge from a group or from many neurons in the brain; They are associated with a series of clinical manifestations due to brain dysfunction. It is considered that seizures originate in the cerebral cortex, and not anywhere else. Depending on the region of the cerebral cortex where the neuronal discharge originates, the clinical manifestations will be different:

• A sensory disturbance (for example, tingling in the thumb).
• A loss of attention (for example, an absence).
• A motor disorder (for example, a contraction of an area of ​​the arm).
• A whole-body seizure, or a combination of several of these symptoms.

It is very important to understand that a Isolated seizure is not always epilepsy. This is the case of febrile seizures. Some young children have a first

According to data from the American population, 25-35% of these children will have another seizure when they have a fever again; However, only 2-3% of them may be diagnosed with epilepsy in later years, which means that these children will have seizures without there is an underlying febrile process.

At what age does epilepsy appear

Epilepsy is a common disorder and one that affects individuals of all ages, although almost two-thirds start in childhood, mainly in the first year of life. The other age group where it appears frequently is old age.

Epileptic seizures

Seizures are born at a specific point in the cerebral cortex, always the same and which is called the epileptogenic focus, and produces always the same manifestations (they are the so-called partial seizures). But the excitement and electrical discharge of neurons from this focus can spread to other contiguous areas and end up affecting the entire brain (these are secondary generalized partial seizures). On other occasions, all the neurons of the cerebral cortex are excited from the beginning, both those of the right cerebral hemisphere and the left cerebral hemisphere (these are generalized seizures).

This is a theoretical classification of crises, since in practice it can be very difficult to differentiate a general crisis from a partial crisis secondarily generalized. In the same patient, seizures are usually always the same, but the presence of any factor or agent that facilitates or blocks the neurons that surround the epileptogenic focus can cause the seizure to vary in its extension and, therefore, in its manifestations.

As a consequence of the electrical discharge of the whole brain, the vital functions how breathing or heartbeat may stop, but generally this only happens for a few seconds and does not cause any physical deterioration. Only in exceptional cases, death may occur from sustained interruption of breathing, cardiac activity, or an unknown cause.

Causes of epilepsy

In many cases, the cause of epilepsy is unknown. In some patients, epilepsy is caused by some kind of genetic alteration; This is the case, for example, of juvenile myoclonic epilepsy. In other cases, the epileptic seizure reflects the presence of an injury, such as a malformation of the brain development of the fetus during pregnancy, a tumor or a previous head injury that has caused an injury to the brain. In this chapter we will refer only to epilepsies in which no brain injury, since in the secondary forms the control passes through the treatment of the lesion that causes the epilepsy.

Various factors are described, some related to diet, which can trigger crisis in epileptic patients:

• Lack of sleep
• Acute alcohol intoxication
• Stop drinking alcohol in people who are used to drinking large amounts of alcohol
• Hypoglycemia
• Menstruation
• Drugs such as tricyclic antidepressants, neuroleptics, and others
• Fever
• States of emotional stress
• Do not take antiepileptic medication

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