Brain Energy: A Revolutionary Breakthrough in Understanding Mental Health—and Improving Treatment for Anxiety, Depression, OCD, PTSD, and More

by Christopher M. Palmer

There is also evidence that fasting, intermittent fasting (IF), and fasting-mimicking diets may play a role in treating mental disorders. They all result in the production of ketone bodies, which are made when fat is being used as an energy source. Fat gets turned into ketones. And, interestingly, this process occurs exclusively in mitochondria, yet another role for these magnificent organelles. Ketones are an alternate source of energy to cells. They also serve as important metabolic signaling molecules, resulting in epigenetic changes. Ketones can be a rescue energy source to insulin-resistant brain cells. While glucose might have trouble getting into these cells, ketones can get inside pretty easily. Fasting also results in autophagy, as I’ve described. There are several versions of IF. Some restrict eating to eight to twelve hours per day. Others allow one meal a day. And others restrict nighttime eating. We have evidence that IF improves mood and cognition, and protects neurons from damage in animal models of epilepsy and Alzheimer’s disease.