Every drug needs to be carefully checked for carbohydrates. In particular, most drugs in liquid form for children contain sugar! If in doubt, contact your physician.

Most anticonvulsants can be maintained when introducing the ketogenic diet. If seizure control improves on the diet, a trial to carfully discontinue the medication may be warranted.

Ja. Unter ketogener Diät stellt sich in der Regel ein Stoffwechsel-gleichgewicht ein. Wird dieses im Rahmen von Fieber, Durchfallerkrankung oder Erbrechen gestört, kann die Ketose zu stark werden. Daher sollte man bei einem fieberhaften Infekt viel trinken: die Ketose wird dadurch verdünnt, Ketone werden wieder vermehrt ausgeschieden und die Stoffwechsellage bleibt stabil.

No. Children on the ketogenic diet should receive the standard vaccinations as recommended.

When the metabolic state is unclear, when loss of ketosis is suspected because of a dietary mistake or an unexpected seizure, glucose and the ketone body 3-hydroxybutyrate can be determined in blood with a simple bedside device similar to diabetic blood glucose monitoring. Once the ketotic state is stable, dip stick analysis in urine are usually sufficient to monitor ketosis.

Die Energiezufuhr unter ketogener Diät ist sorgfältig berechnet. Ihr Kind bekommt so alle erforderlichen Kalorien und Nährstoffe, ohne dass es ‘Fett ansetzt’. Da Ihr Kind wächst, sind regelmäßige Überwachungen und Neuberechnungen der ketogenen Diät durch den/die DiätassistentIn wichtig.

Inform caretakers and teachers about the special diet of your child. They can help to avoid dietary breakthroughs by uncontrolled food intake. Ask your dietitian for meals that can be easly prepared in advance and transported in snack-boxes. Use a cooler and find out if a microwave is available for your child.

Basically yes. It is always helpful to check in advance if basic facilities to prepare ketogenic meals are available in motels or lodges. Caution is necessary when travelling in foreign countries with limited food availability or poor medical support – in case of a hospital admission due to diarrhea or other illnesses it might not be possible to maintain the ketogenic diet. If you plan such journeys, try to obtain a travel insurance that will bring you and your child back to your home country in case of serious illness.

Unexpected seizures are often the result of a sudden loss of ketosis due to dietary mistakes. Find out if your child had a sweetie or crisps from other children or your next door neighbour. Did you change ingredients of the diet? Check ketosis and contact your physician for further advice. Often the diet can simply be continued and ketosis will return.

Ja, es kann die Ketose verlieren, aber man muss nicht wieder ganz von vorne mit der ketogenen Diät anfangen. Vielleicht müssen ein bis zwei Mahlzeiten ausgelassen werden, bis sich wieder Ketone im Blut/Urin nachweisen lassen - dann wird die Diät unverändert fortgeführt.

The diet has been used for decades. As far as we know ketosis does not affect growth, liver or kidney function. Elevated blood lipids are a concern as they potentially increase the risk of arteriosclerosis. However, no long-term studies are available to answer this question.

Similar to general recommendations vegetable fats should be preferred over animal fats as they contain higher amounts of essential and polyunsaturated fatty acids.

Breast milk contains relatively high amounts of fat, but is not ketogenic. Infants starting a ketogenic diet need to be weaned and will be fed with carbohydrate-free infant formula, fat emulsions and adequate supplements.