Benefits of the ketogenic diet in postpartum psychosis

Abstract

Post-partum psychosis consists in the abrupt appearance of psychotic symptoms in this period. The treatment is a combination of multiple medications including lithium, antipsychotics, benzodiazepines and others. Ketogenic diet, is an intervention based on high fat, low carbohydrates, adequate protein aiming to generate ketosis, and recent studies shown promising benefits in several conditions besides the historically know in epilepsy. We presented a case of a patient with psychosis post-partum, who achieved a rapid, full remission of her symptoms with the standard medication plus the adoption of a ketogenic diet. A 22 year-old patient, 7 months postpartum of her third child, starts presenting manic behaviors, with delusions of grandiosity related to her religious beliefs and hallucinations and reduced need of sleep. It immediately started on medication, with benzodiazepines, olanzapine and lithium, with the adoption also of a strict ketogenic diet. In the following 3 weeks to achieve complete remission of her symptoms with no recurrence. In the treatment of postpartum psychosis, most used medications do not provide resolution in the totality of patients and also generate disturbances in the patients physical and mental health, as well as in breastfeeding and in the newborn’s health. Ketogenic diet can be an effective and safe intervention, which may help in reducing the need for medications, improve the rate of remission and recurrence. Further systematic research may be needed to determine the role of this diet in such a negatively impacting condition.