S2E5: Dr. Elena Gross - What Causes Migraines and What You Can Do to Prevent Them From Wreaking Havoc

Dr. Elena Gross has a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, a Master’s degree in Neuroscience, and a PhD in Clinical Research. She’s also the founder and CEO/CSO of Keto.Swiss, a Swiss biotech company that’s developing brain fuels to treat migraines.

 

As a former migraine sufferer, Dr. Gross dove into the research to treat her own symptoms and ended up discovering how ketone bodies could provide a therapeutic treatment for migraines. She also initiated and funded the first ever clinical trial that used exogenous ketone body salts, which was her PhD project that won several awards. Dr. Gross has also been featured in high-ranking publications where she’s shared her expertise on ketosis, keto diets, energy metabolism, and neurological diseases (specifically migraines). She’s also the inventor of four patents.

 

In this episode, Dr. Gross discusses the causes of migraines, the evolutionary benefit of migraines, the metabolic side of migraines, how keto affects migraines, and more.

 

You’ll also learn what you should and shouldn’t do when it comes to treating migraines.

 

Here’s a look at the episode breakdown:

00:00 Introduction to the Keto Answers podcast  

00:29 Introduction to this episode’s guest, Dr. Elena Gross

02:17 A look back at Dr. Gross and Chris Irvin’s last conference before Covid really hit and whether she’ll be attending any in the near future 

07:45 Dr. Gross’ personal experience with migraines

11:41 What causes migraines?

19:37 Do people suffer from migraines due to hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar, or because they are insulin resistant?

28:17 Is the issue with the brain metabolizing glucose during a migraine?

30:50 More reasons why you could have migraines

34:51 Why Dr. Gross suggests using ketones as the last step

37:02 Why you shouldn’t go cold turkey when it comes to cutting back on carbs if you suffer from migraines

40:24 Why ketones are useful for migraines

45:17 The results Dr. Gross and her team discovered in a clinical trial for migraine treatment

51:41 What’s next for Dr. Gross and her team

 

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Dr. Elena Gross’ website Keto.Swiss

Dr. Gross’ Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube channel

Dr. Gross’ and her team’s product Brain Ritual MigraKet