Researchers at UC San Francisco have discovered that the ketogenic (keto) diet might one day help treat autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS) by reducing inflammation.
The keto diet, which is low in carbs and high in fat, causes the body to burn fat for fuel instead of carbohydrates.
This process creates ketone bodies, compounds that not only provide energy but may also affect the immune system.
In a recent study with mice, scientists found that higher levels of a ketone body called β-hydroxybutyrate (βHB) were linked to less severe MS symptoms. When βHB levels increased, it encouraged certain gut bacteria to produce another compound called indole lactic acid (ILA).
This compound appears to reduce inflammation by blocking T helper 17 cells, which are often active in autoimmune disorders.
Dr. Peter Turnbaugh, a researcher from UCSF’s Benioff Center for Microbiome Medicine, explained, “It was exciting to see that we could protect these mice from inflammation by simply changing their diet and adding certain compounds.”
Previously, Turnbaugh’s team had shown that βHB can calm immune responses in the gut, which led Margaret Alexander, a postdoctoral researcher, to test whether it might ease MS symptoms in mice.
The study, published in Cell Reports, showed that mice on the keto diet with higher βHB levels had reduced inflammation, even when they couldn’t naturally produce βHB. Adding βHB to their diet further reduced their symptoms.
To better understand this effect, researchers studied the gut bacteria of three groups of mice: those on a keto diet, a high-fat diet, and a high-fat diet with extra βHB.
They discovered that the beneficial effects came from a type of bacteria called Lactobacillus murinus, which produced the anti-inflammatory ILA compound.
Additional testing confirmed that ILA from L. murinus can influence immune cells, further easing symptoms in the MS mice.
When the researchers gave the mice either ILA or L. murinus alone, they saw similar improvements, suggesting that specific gut bacteria and their by-products might play an important role in managing inflammation.
Dr. Turnbaugh is hopeful but cautious, noting that more research is needed to confirm these findings in humans.
“The big question now is whether this will work in real patients,” he said. “But this research offers hope for developing an alternative treatment for autoimmune conditions that could be less challenging than following a strict diet.”
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For more information about nutrition, please see recent studies that olive oil may help you live longer, and vitamin D could help lower the risk of autoimmune diseases.
Source: UC San Francisco.
