Dr. Chris Palmer has been a psychiatric researcher for 25 years, and he’s used the ketogenic diet—validated for epilepsy treatment—to reverse symptoms of his patients’ chronic depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia. Ketogenic diets are described as high-fat with minimal carbohydrates and moderate protein.
While he doesn’t necessarily endorse a ketogenic diet for everyone, Dr. Palmer said dietary strategies are among personalized approaches that can prevent and slow the progression of mental health symptoms. Many lifestyle strategies, he said, can sometimes work better than medications and psychotherapy, with the bonus of improving physical health, too.
He expands on these concepts in his new book, “Brain Energy,” which offers new solutions to mental health problems that can get worse in spite of accelerated drug treatments.
To unify mental illness research among medical disciplines with evidence found in clinical, neuroscience, and metabolic research, Dr. Palmer has proposed a new theory: Mental disorders are metabolic disorders of the brain.
Because metabolism is something that can ebb and flow, symptoms can surface before a diagnosis and be key warning signs for anyone who has even occasional bouts of anxiety and depression or has been told they are prediabetic or at risk of Alzheimer’s disease. In other words, Dr. Palmer’s findings have key takeaways for anyone who wants to be in optimal health.
This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
