Press

Are carbs brain energy or health foe?

November 5, 2019

I weighed in on this article for Well+Good about carbs and how they affect your brain health:

While many keto fans claim that their increased mental clarity is the result of carbohydrate restriction, Dr. Khambatta disagrees. “It’s because they’ve replaced low-nutrient foods like breads, pasta, and cookies with higher-nutrient foods. It’s not that they’ve cut carbs,” argues Dr. Khambatta. “If you replace the same low-nutrient foods with nutrient-rich complex carb sources, you’ll likely experience the same benefits.”

Plus, the jury’s out on any definitive long-term benefits of keto for brain health. “The ketogenic diet was originally recommended to people with epilepsy who experienced seizures and it was successful in treating that. But as far as longterm brain health for the average healthy person, we just don’t know yet,” says registered dietitian Maya Feller, RD. “When people tell me they’re cutting carbs, the big question I ask them is, ‘Okay, but what are you replacing them with?’ Because while we don’t know how eliminating carbs completely affects brain health longterm, we do know certain foods that are linked to good brain health—like leafy greens—and foods that aren’t.”

Maya Feller

Maya Feller, MS, RD, CDN is the founder and lead dietitian at Maya Feller Nutrition. In her practice, her team provides medical nutrition therapy and nutrition coaching for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, mood disorders, developmental disabilities, disordered eating, and more. Maya believes in providing inclusive nutrition education from an anti-bias patient-centered, culturally humble approach to help people make informed food choices. Maya shares her approachable, food-based solutions with millions of people through regular speaking engagements, writing, her social platforms, and as a national nutrition expert on Good Morning America, is a Healthline Medical Advisor, and on the advisory board for SHAPE and Parents, as well as appearing on TODAY Show, Tamron Hall, and in The New York Times, mindbodygreen, Well+Good, Food Network, Martha Stewart, Real Simple, Good Housekeeping, Cooking Light, Eating Well, Prevention, Glamour, SELF, and more. She is the author of The Southern Comfort Food Diabetes Cookbook: Over 100 Recipes for a Healthy Life and Eating from Our Roots: 80+ Healthy Home-Cooked Favorites from Cultures Around the World (goop Press, January 24, 2023).

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