According to the Epilepsy Foundation, 65 million people all over the world have epilepsy. There’s a lot of talk about diet when it comes to treating these conditions. So is a plant-based diet good for epilepsy?
Epilepsy revolves around the brain, so brain health is central for preventing and treating the disease. Your diet affects the whole body, including the central processing unit, i.e., your brain. This is why a majority of diseases are in one way or another linked to your diet and lifestyle, and epilepsy is no different.
There’s mounting evidence about plant-based diets being highly beneficial for heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, and liver disease. Now, it seems like such a diet may also be good for patients with epilepsy.
What is Epilepsy?
Epilepsy is a chronic condition that results in seizures. The seizures are unprovoked and can cause muscle twitches and spasms. Seizures due to epilepsy are recurring and may affect a certain part of the brain or the whole brain.
This neurological disorder can occur in anyone, regardless of gender, age, or ethnicity. It’s usually diagnosed when a person has had at least two unprovoked seizures. Provoked seizures are different and usually result from trauma, hypoglycemia, fever, or drug/alcohol withdrawal.
Epilepsy Types and Symptoms
Seizures are the primary symptoms of epilepsy, but as a brain condition, it can also affect some other brain functions. Some of the other symptoms include loss of consciousness or awareness, confusion, staring in a particular direction, uncontrollable movements, and anxiety or fear.
Epilepsy vs. Seizure: Seizure is not necessarily epilepsy, but it’s a symptom. There can be other causes of a seizure, but recurring seizures are a sign of epilepsy, which is a neurological condition.
Types of Seizures
Seizures refer to unusual electrical activity in the brain. Epilepsy patients experience different types of seizures, so symptoms usually vary by the type of seizures. However, they usually experience the same type of seizures in every episode.
There are two main types of seizures: focal seizures and generalized seizures. Focal seizures affect a certain part of the brain, whereas generalized seizures affect the whole brain.
Focal seizures are also termed partial seizures and have two subtypes with different symptoms. Generalized seizures are divided into six subtypes with their accompanying symptoms.
Here’s a chart that explains the different epilepsy types by seizure types:
| Focal Seizures | Simple Focal Seizure |
|
| Complex Focal Seizure |
| |
| Generalized Seizures | Absence Seizures |
|
| Tonic Seizures |
| |
| Atonic Seizures |
| |
| Clonic Seizures |
| |
| Tonic-clonic Seizures |
| |
| Myoclonic Seizures |
|
How is Epilepsy Diagnosed?
Seizures are the main indicator of epilepsy, but your doctor will rule out any other probable causes first. You may also go through a neurological exam, where basic motor skills and mental functions are tested.
Electroencephalogram (EEG) is the most common test for diagnosing epilepsy. It’s a non-invasive test that may be performed while you’re asleep. Imaging tests like CT scans or MRIs are usually used to find if there’s a tumor causing the seizures.
Epilepsy Causes and Risk Factors
There are many causes and risk factors that contribute to epilepsy. Some are beyond control, which may make it harder for some people to avoid it, even if they have a healthy lifestyle. Some diseases and infections also raise the risk of epilepsy.
Here are the common risk factors that can ultimately cause epilepsy too:
Genetics and Family History
Is epilepsy genetic? Yes, genetics plays a vital role in causing epilepsy. According to the Mayo Clinic, there are over 500 genes that can cause seizures.
Certain types of seizures may run in the family, so family history may also play a role. However, it’s not necessary that someone who has parents with epilepsy may also get it.
Genes may not be the only cause, rather they make a person more sensitive to seizure triggers. So it’s fair to say that in most cases, genes combine with other risk factors of epilepsy.
Brain Conditions
Stroke and brain tumors can also cause epilepsy. In fact, in adults older than 35, stroke is the main cause of epilepsy.
Head Trauma
Head trauma from an accident or other type of injury also causes this condition.
Brain Infections
Brain infections like meningitis also increase the risk of epilepsy. This infection is marked by inflammation in the brain, which may hamper brain activity and cause seizures.
Prenatal Injury
If the mother has an infection or has poor nutrition, the baby’s brain can get damaged, leading to epilepsy in the baby after birth. Also, oxygen deficiency can also increase the risk of epilepsy in unborn babies.
Dementia
In older people, dementia increases the risk of epilepsy as it’s also a brain disease.
Is a Plant-based Diet Good for Epilepsy?
There’s a dearth of scientific research about the effects of a plant-based diet on epilepsy. However, there’s semantic evidence that a diet full of plant-based whole foods may be able to prevent epilepsy and may also be helpful if you’re already diagnosed with it.
First of all, let’s talk about meat and its effect on the brain. According to Dr. Michael Greger of NutritionFacts.org, pork tapeworms are a leading cause of adult-onset epilepsy. Interestingly, pork tapeworms can also be found in people who don’t eat pork.
He cites a study where an Orthodox Jewish community was tested for pork tapeworms. One percent of them were found positive, even though pork is strictly off in a kosher diet. He points out that it was the domestic house workers that lead to the transmission of these tapeworms.
The gist of the video and the study is that pork can put you at risk of epilepsy through tapeworms. On the contrary, plant-based diets are free of any kind of meat, not just pork. As a result, they prevent any potential damage meat can cause to your brain.
Anti-Inflammatory Effect
In the context of epilepsy, the most beneficial aspect of a plant-based diet is its anti-inflammatory properties. A plant-based diet has been known to reduce inflammation in the body, which is why it’s a viable solution for reversing arthritis.
Seizures can result from inflammation in the brain, either because of trauma, infections, or stroke. If you’re getting seizures as a result of inflammation in the brain, a plant-based diet may be very effective in reducing seizures.
Healthy Gut
Another rather unexplored connection is the role of a plant-based diet in gut health. A leaky gut without a healthy gut microbiome can cause inflammation in the brain. It can also trigger reactions from the immune system.
This review study from Translational Psychiatry analyzed the effects of a vegan diet on cognitive health. While they did not find much evidence of direct effects on the brain, they did find that a plant-based diet can positively affect brain function through metabolic and microbial alterations.
Low Calories/Fasting
A research study published in the journal Neuron found that calorie reduction and fasting can help reduce seizures. The study found that reducing calories either by fasting or simply eating less reduced the stress on the nervous system. In other words, it gave the system a break and calmed the overworked neurons.
While they don’t know how exactly it works on a molecular level, but the outcome was positive, indicating that this is a viable solution for people with severe seizures. In fact, fasting has been known to work well for reducing seizures in some people for a while.
Now, how does fasting or reducing calories relate to a plant-based diet? A plant-based diet can easily help one reduce their calorie intake. The leading benefit of a plant-based diet is that it provides nutrition without empty calories.
If there’s any diet that can make it easier for you to reduce your calories without damaging your health, it’s a plant-based diet. Moreover, whole foods rich in fiber will keep you full, making it easy for you to fast.
Can Epilepsy Be Cured?
Epilepsy may not be entirely curable, but it’s controllable. In other words, by simply controlling or reducing the seizures, you can improve your lifestyle and avoid complications.
Most people, as much as 80 percent, use medications to control their seizures, and they do work in most cases. The severity of epilepsy varies by type of seizures, so your doctor will prescribe you the best anti-seizure or anticonvulsant medication for your particular case.
Diet plays an important role when it comes to controlling seizures. Certain foods can be triggers for seizures, which, of course, must be avoided. In this regard, eliminating sugars is the best route, as studies show sugars from carbs and highly-processed foods can exacerbate the seizures.
Even the Epilepsy Foundation recommends avoiding sugars and adding more natural whole foods in your diet. You can get plenty of the latter with a whole-food plant-based diet. There are examples of vegetarians and vegans successfully controlling their seizures.
The ketogenic diet is also popular for the treatment of epilepsy, but it’s considered as a tertiary treatment, for those who may not respond to medication. Keto diet has it’s own drawbacks, as it’s a very difficult diet to maintain long-term. Secondly, keto can interfere with physical capacity, reducing muscles and bone density, especially in children, as explained in this NutritionFacts.org video.
Relaxing your brain, meditating, and practicing other forms of self-control have also been found to help prevent seizures from epilepsy. Lastly, surgery is another alternative, sort of a last resort for people for whom neither medications nor dietary changes are working.
Is Epilepsy Fatal?
Epilepsy, in most cases, is not life-threatening. Most individuals with epilepsy live a full and thriving life, especially when seizures are under control. However, in certain cases, this disease can be fatal.
If the underlying cause of epilepsy is a brain infection or tumor, then that can be deadly. Epilepsy patients can also sometimes face anxiety, which can reduce the quality of life. Similarly, some people may lose their lives in accidents during seizures, which is why it’s all the more important to control them.
Wrap Up
Is a plant-based diet good for epilepsy? Yes, if we go by some current examples and even through simple reasoning. However, there’s clearly a need for more research.
If anything, there’s ample evidence that it does not contain any foods that may exacerbate the condition, as long as you stick to whole foods and whole grains. Epilepsy can be controlled, and you can even get off medication. However, it will take some time and perhaps a lot of commitment on your part.
You may also like: IS A PLANT-BASED DIET GOOD FOR HEART DISEASE? >>CLICK HERE!
