Ketogenic diet and exercise offer new opportunities for people with narcolepsy

Narcolepsy is a chronic sleep disorder in which sufferers fall asleep suddenly and uncontrollably during the day and feel constantly tired. This disorder can have a severe impact on life.

In a recent study at Witten/Herdecke University (UW/H), researchers found that both a ketogenic diet and regular exercise can improve extreme daytime sleepiness in narcolepsy. "The results are impressive: both approaches reduce sleepiness to a degree that is otherwise only achieved with medication," explains study coordinator and doctoral student at the UW/H Frederike Tepel.

44 adults with narcolepsy completed the study. For a total of ten weeks, they either followed an elaborate training programme with physical exercise, a ketogenic diet or the usual treatment. The ketogenic diet is a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet that puts the body into a state of ketosis, in which fat is used for energy instead of glucose.

Both the sports and diet groups showed significant improvements.

Better quality of life without side effects

In addition to less fatigue, the participants' physical and mental quality of life also improved without any side effects. "However, a ketogenic diet is not easy to implement, especially in everyday life or when eating out with friends. It is also comparatively expensive," says Prof Dr Ulf Kallweit, holder of the endowed professorship for narcolepsy and hypersomnolence research at the UW/H and head of the study.

A simpler alternative might therefore be a less strict, low-carbohydrate diet.

The results show that exercise and diet could be real alternatives or at least an important supplement to drug treatment. Further research will be needed to confirm these results and put them into practice.

The study was first presented at the European Academy of Neurology 2024 Congress in Helsinki to great interest.