The Power of a low carb brain

(Jennibc) #1

Okay, so I’ve waffled on whether to post this or not because I don’t want it to seem like too much of mother brag (which it kind of is!). But since you don’t know us in real life AND I feel like it is illustrative, I want to pass it along to y’all with kids. My 17 year old son went off sugar last year shortly after I did (we were already grain free). From the time he was about six he had focus control issues. His first grade teacher suggested I get him tested for ADD. I declined because I wasn’t willing to medicate him and I didn’t want him stigmatized. So in the middle of the second grade I pulled him out of school to home school. I figured we could make sure he got what he needed without having him fall between the cracks.

He’s a pretty bright kid, but has always had difficulty staying focused on his work. However he was able to start taking classes at community college his freshman year in high school part time. I constantly had to nag him to stay on task and go in and check on him when he did his homework. But then we quit sugar last March. This fall (his junior year in high school) he decided since going sugar free, he felt so much more focused he started taking 13 credits a term. So far so good. He’s kept his 4.0 in tact even though he’s taking a full time college course load.

Then he started prepping for the SAT (college boards) in January and decided to give up fruit and go full on keto. He considered it like ‘training.’ He practiced test problems and seriously committed to keto eating from January through March 9 when he sat for the test. He got his scores back last Friday and he was elated to learn that he got a 1590 out of a 1600 on the test, which puts him in the top 1400 students this year (out of over 2 million) that take the test nationally. He credits the low carb way of eating for his test performance. There is NO WAY he would have done that well if he was still where he was just over a year ago cognitively. I believe he would have done well, but not like that.

THAT is the power fueling one’s brain with fat and not carbs!

(Omar) #2

congratulation

#3

Congratulations!!! That’s amazing!!!

(Katie the Quiche Scoffing Stick Ninja ) #4

Wow, that’s very impressive.
Congratulations to your son, and to you!

(Carl Keller) #5

Congrats @Jennibc.

I truly wish I knew about keto when I was in school. I also had focus issues and I know ketones would have helped.

All these years I thought that there was something wrong me but now I know it’s the garbage I was eating.

(Jennibc) #6

There are so many kids needlessly suffering with self doubt for exactly this reason. I can empathize, @CarlKeller as that’s where I was growing up and throughout college. I finally succumbed to the mistaken belief that I needed medication. That’s why I was adamant about not drugging my son. Everyday I am grateful that we figured out the dietary connection to the ‘psychiatric’ and focus problems he was having a young child.

(Christiana) #7

That’s amazing! I was fully ketogenic from the middle of my freshman year of college on, and I had a definite academic upper-hand over my classmates. My ability to focus and recall information was amazing! I could research, write papers, etc. for hours without breaking focus. Anytime I have reverted back to carb eating the first thing I notice is that I “feel dumb”. My brain moves slower and I have a harder time thinking critically and synthesizing information.

Congratulations to your family. The ketogenic brain is truly powerful!

(Stickin' with mammoth) #8

Yeah, but can he tie a cherry stem into a knot with his tongue? That’s what I learned in college.

Just kidding. Tell him good job.