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Metabolic Mind

Metabolic Therapies for Psychiatry: State of the Evidence

May 2, 2023
Dr. Shebani Sethi, a psychiatrist at Stanford specializing in metabolic mental health, and Dr. Cynthia Calkin from Dalhousie, an expert in psychiatric therapies, dive into the fascinating link between metabolic health and mental illness. They discuss how therapies like nutritional ketosis and metformin might alleviate severe psychiatric symptoms. The conversation highlights the significance of robust clinical trials and shares insights on how these findings can impact real-world patient care, especially for those seeking alternative treatment options.
34:52

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Quick takeaways

  • Metabolic health plays a crucial role in mental health, with therapies like nutritional ketosis showing promise in alleviating psychiatric symptoms.
  • Insulin resistance is identified as a common pathway affecting mental health, suggesting that addressing metabolic dysfunction can enhance traditional psychiatric treatments.

Deep dives

The Connection Between Metabolic and Mental Health

The podcast emphasizes the growing interest in the relationship between metabolic health and mental health, particularly through therapies like nutritional ketosis. It highlights how metabolic dysfunction can affect mental illness, with emerging evidence suggesting that problems with glucose metabolism may precede psychiatric symptoms. The discussion revolves around the potential of ketogenic diets, which have a long-standing application in neurology, particularly for treating epilepsy, to also improve psychiatric health. Understanding the metabolic factors influencing brain function could offer new treatment pathways for conditions like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

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