Beth Zupec-Kania, RDN, CD, world-renowned ketogenic authority and lecturer, nutritional coach, and consultant for The Charlie Foundation, delivers a truly impressive and thoroughly thought-provoking overview on the power of nutrition and the ketogenic diet.

Zupec-Kania is a registered and certified dietitian and nutritionist and has spent over 25 years coaching medical professionals, patients, and families on the myriad benefits of nutritional ketosis for neurological disorders, specific types of cancers and many other metabolic-based conditions. Zupec-Kania is the primary consultant for The Charlie Foundation where she continues to spread her message and vision for health and hope. As she is a respected authority on nutritional issues, over 250 medical centers worldwide have participated in her advanced training seminars and workshops for medical professionals with The Charlie Foundation.

Zupec-Kania’s primary area of focus is ketogenic diet therapy for children with inherited metabolic disorders, and anyone else who may require a blenderized diet, which is a diet composed of foods and liquids that are thinned in a blender or food processor and strainer, for enteral nutrition. Zupec-Kania works with her patients individually to evaluate them and develop a personalized plan tailored to their specific needs, considering their existing conditions, medications, and comprehensive medical history.

Zupec-Kania talks about her personal background, and motivation for devoting her professional life to nutrition and wellness. While her father suffered through cancer she saw how brutal the chemo and radiation treatments were, and in spite of their severity, they still provided no improvement. She felt there had to be more that could be done for patients. At college prep school she declared nutrition as her area of study. After her studies were complete, Zupec-Kania began focusing on nutrition as a means to improve health implementing her research into keto for epilepsy and eventually keto for cancer.

Zupec-Kania discusses the birth of the ketogenic diet at the Mayo Clinic as a means for treating epilepsy. And interestingly, Zupec-Kania states that keto was being studied simultaneously in Germany as a potential treatment for cancer. She talks enthusiastically about the amazing benefits of the ketogenic diet, and states that it is good to see the medical community finally embracing keto as a method of treating cancer. Zupec-Kania provides a detailed overview of the many beneficial mechanisms of the ketogenic diet. As she states, cancer is an inflammatory process, and the ketogenic diet has a strong anti-inflammatory effect. She delves into the ways cancer progresses. As it is known that glucose feeds tumor cells it is important to cut off cancer cells’ energy supply. The metabolic therapy of keto can certainly offer another option to individuals who are looking for ways to fight their cancer. She discusses specific patients with whom she has worked who have seen improvement after implementing a ketogenic diet. Unfortunately, however, many doctors and healthcare professionals are still unaware of not only the importance of keto for fighting inflammation and disease but also the incredible power of food and nutrition in general.

The nutrition expert talks specifically about the process she goes through with patients as they map out a strategy for their degree of ketosis, which takes into account all their medical factors, goals, and particular issues. She discusses the types of exogenous ketones and their various benefits. From coconut oil to MCT oil, Zupec-Kania explains the various medium-chain fats that are ketotic producing, how they work, and why they work. She talks about how tastes change when on a ketogenic diet, and how people no longer need sweet tastes; the craving stops.

Zupec-Kania recounts the ways keto has impacted cancer patients she has worked with and others she has observed. While some have seen dramatic improvements, such as a stoppage of the proliferation of their cancer, others have ultimately still succumbed to the disease, though even these individuals have attested to a general improvement in the way they feel, proving that there really is no downside to keto for these patients. She recounts an amazing story of a woman who decided to forego traditional cancer therapies and instead turned to a ketogenic diet upon diagnosis. The woman had to find a new doctor who would work with her on her terms, and wonderfully, six years out, she is cancer free. Unfortunately, however, many only seek out a ketogenic diet as a last resort, so it is often implemented too late to take full advantage of its incredible nutritional power.

Zupec-Kania is a frequent lecturer on nutrition and keto specifically, and she chairs many global ketogenic symposiums and medical conferences. She has authored numerous publications and abstracts covering the various issues in her field of expertise.

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