There has been considerable interest among keto parents in Erin's diet as an alternative to the ketogenic diet. It must be understood that Erin's diet is not based on ketosis and is not proven.

Erin's diet was developed by Christa Farrell as an alternative to the ketogenic diet because her daughter could not tolerate a high fat diet. It is based on maintaining the body at a low acid pH and using otherwise good dietary principles.

Warning: There are three important differences between Erin's diet and the ketogenic diet:

• Erin's diet is not an accepted medical procedure.

• Erin's diet does not have a proven record of successful use.

• Erin's diet is not based on ketosis, which is normally thought to be the mechanism by which the ketogenic diet works.

The following information is taken directly from various writings by Christa Farrell, with her approval.

"Introduction

"There are indeed parallels between Erin's diet and the ketogenic diet. I based my diet on the principles governing the ketogenic diet. Plus, I incorporated the new research on fats now available, and also looked at nutritional needs and a nutritionally sound way to acidify the body somewhat. Out came Erin's diet.

The ketogenic diet has a success rate of about 30%, because it is very hard on the digestive system. Most children can not handle all that fat! This is the reason I did not put my child on it. Erin already had digestive problems, the ketogenic diet would have been useless. But the principles behind it were interesting. Medicine had no explanation of why it worked. However for me it provided insight into pH balance, candida, and nutrients necessary for the brain to function normally. My diet is being validated daily by new research implicating essential fatty acids deficiency in more and more neurological problems like ADD, hyperactivity, autism, etc.

"For children that can tolerate the ketogenic diet, I strongly recommend incorporating "good oils" - cod liver oil, evening primrose oil, salmon or tuna oil, flax seed oil, etc. Unrefined and unprocessed, in dark bottles and expiry dated. These are oils that heal!

"The road back to health for those most affected is not simple. And my diet is not simple. Once I had all the principles in place, my daughter got better quickly. Before that, we went up and down like a yo-yo.

"History

"In May 1991 our daughter Erin was a typical, happy child. . . One morning, she woke up with a fit. . . later at breakfast she had another fit.

"Now began the search to recapture her health. In retrospect, we recall that Erin had suffered from a variety of signs that something wasn't quite right for some time. . . complaints of leg aches, a loss of energy, changes in her bowel habits and some digestive disturbances. As I tried to piece together the clues leading to her health decline, I was met with a vague disinterest from the medical professionals attending her. They gave her the usual "tests" and treated her with anti-epileptic medication. Although I am an RN by profession, my common sense told me that conventional medicine was not appreciating the full picture - I knew that suppressing the symptom (fit) with medication, was not attacking the underlying problem. It took a long, five years of research and watching Erin suffer from fits and the side effects of medications that were meant to control the fits. The medications did not control her fits, but made her mentally slow. Erin's body was getting weaker. Her right side became so weak that she started walking like someone who had a right sided stroke. In the mornings she could hardly hold her head up. We bought a stroller to transport her.

"All that I was learning through my research convinced me that parasites, fits, nutrition, absorption of nutrients, acid alkaline balance, and allergies were all part of the same package. It took some time before I began to understand how to pull it all together. When I studied the ketogenic diet and related that with what I had also learned about fats from Udo Erasmus' book "Fats that Heal, Fats that Kill", I felt that I had found another piece of the puzzle that as yet I had neglected to explore. I knew in my heart that malnutrition due to parasites and malabsorption had brought about fits. This resulted in a body that had 1) acid alkaline imbalance, 2) allergies to many foods, 3) overgrowth of unfriendly organisms like candida and others, 4) inability to digest foods properly. It occurred to me then, that essential fatty acids may be the nutrients my daughter did not have enough of, in order to regain nutritional balance.

"When I finally pieced together the right combination of supplements and food types - within days, Erin improved. She had been having an average of 2 - 8 fits per night, but had some days with up to 20 fits. . . within a couple of days, these decreased to 1 or 2 'every so often'. It was like a miracle. Within two months, Erin stopped experiencing fits altogether. After three months of 'strict' diet, we were able to start introducing a little fruit, etc. Erin is now 11 years old. She had intractable fits for five years. She has not had a single fit in almost two years. She can and will eat anything she likes now, without ill effect.

"Principles of the diet

"Children with fits have cognitive problems not only from drugs, but also from deficiencies, the main one being without a doubt essential fatty acids. If there is any book I recommend, then that is   Fats that Heal, Fats that Kill   by Dr Udo Erasmus. Dr Wiley's book   Biobalance   only gives us a means to an end, he allows us to acidify the body at a "cellular" level, to discourage unfriendly organisms, until the body can do that by itself again!!

"The answer, or secret lies in the fact that we are genetically programmed to have fish, seeds and nuts in our food, which provides essential fatty acids. Those fats are integral part of our metabolism. Integral part of every cell in our body, especially our brain cells, which can not get enough oxygen, or nutrients without them. (Please do not attempt to feed seeds and nuts to a sick child!) Instead, our modern diet is full of denatured (white) fats, that can not perform the functions natural fats can, they are choking us to death, so to speak.

"What Erin's diet does is:

• Changes body pH, as does the ketogenic diet. We do it with healthy food.

• Give nothing sweet that unfriendly micro-organisms can thrive on, as does the ketogenic diet.

• Give fats and oils that the body must have, to function normally, essential fatty acids that are essential for the brain, and body to function normally.

"To be able to do this effectively, we must also:

• Further support the digestive process by giving:
  Swedish Bitters - this acidifies and supports digestive organs.
  Digestive enzymes - to help digestion

• Destroy and suppress unfriendly bacteria, fungi and yeasts by giving:
  Caprylic acid - very effective anti-candida medication.
  Liquid garlic - general antibacterial and anti-fungal.

• Help rebuild the person by giving:
  Multi-vitamin - preferably in three separate meals to maximize it.
  Essential fatty acids - the most important missing nutrients that will cure.

"Essential fatty acids

"A relative deficiency of essential fatty acids in cellular membranes makes it virtually impossible for the cell membrane to perform its vital function A diet composed of largely saturated fat, animal fatty acids, cholesterol, and trans fatty acids, such as the American diet, is going to lead to membranes which are much less fluid in nature compared to the membranes of an individual consuming optimal levels of both essential fatty acids. Because the brain is the richest source of phospholipids in the human body and accurate nerve cell function is critically dependent on proper membrane fluidity, it only makes sense that alteration in membrane fluidity could dramatically impact behavior, mood, and mental function. In addition studies have shown the biophysical properties, including fluidity of synaptic membranes directly influences neurotransmitter synthesis, signal transduction, uptake of serotonin and other neurotransmitters, and neurotransmitter bindings.

"A deficiency in essential fatty acids by the same token will also disrupt acid alkaline balance and allow opportunistic micro-organisms to overrun the weakened host.

"I personally have the feeling that allergies, Alzheimer's, autism, fits,etc.etc. have a common origin. The answer, or secret lies in the fact that we are genetically programmed to have seeds and nuts in our food, which provides essential fatty acids. Those fats are integral part of our metabolism. Integral part of every cell in our body, especially our brain cells, which can not get enough oxygen,or nutrients without them. Instead, our modern diet is full of denatured - white - fats,that can not perform the functions natural fats can, they are choking us to death, so to speak.

"The road back to health for those most affected is not simple. And my diet is not simple. Once I had all the principles in place, my daughter got better quickly. I did have some tests done on Erin, but found a lot of them inconclusive, so I stopped taking them. Most of my learning came from observation, and measuring that against knowledge. Cross referencing was a tool. Did you know that conventional medicine does not accept that candida can have a systemic effect? If you follow that trend of thought we are wasting our time!That is why I call this a leap of faith!

"Foods allowed in Erin's diet

"The diet consists of:

• Consists of foods that acidify the body, according to findings of Rudolf A.Wiley, PhD in biobalance.

• Nothing sweet, not even refined carbohydrates . . . nothing that can be construed as "sweet" tasting.

• Erin's supplements were instrumental in her nutrition, digestion and in controlling fungal overgrowth

"Meat Fish Poultry
"Allowed: All light fish like, cod, sole, haddock, perch, red snapper, etc. Also well rinsed fancy white albacore tuna packed in water. Eggs, but not for breakfast. Lean skinned chicken and turkey breast. Some very lean red meat and pork like tenderloin.

"Avoid: All organ meats like liver, kidney, tongue, tripe, etc. Bacon, most pork, most red meats including venison and lamb. Duck, goose, poultry wings thighs and drumsticks; all dark poultry. All fatty fish like, salmon, dark meat tuna (even "chunk light") , swordfish, mackerel, sardines, herring, caviar and salmon roe; all shellfish like abalone, scallops, clams, etc. All crustaceans like, shrimp, crab, lobster, etc. No squid, calamari, wieners, or cold cuts.

"Vegetables

"Allowed: Broccoli, cabbage, gai lan, bock choi, zucchini, kale, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, mustard greens, eggplant (not fried), garlic, horseradish, onion, leeks, bean sprouts. Use carrots and celery sparingly.

"Avoid: All leguminous vegetables, like peas, beans, and lentils, including tofu. No spinach, cauliflower, artichoke and asparagus. No mushrooms.

"Grains

"Allowed: All whole grains with the exception of corn. Good are brown rice, oats, barley, buckwheat, millet, rye, wheat, amaranth, etc. Rice cakes are a good snack food.

"Avoid: Corn and popcorn.

"Miscellaneous

"Allowed: Lean and diluted clarified chicken broth; low or no salt, mustard (without additives) horseradish, hot sauce, provided it has no sugar of any kind. Tomato based soup and sauces are permitted, provided they do not contain much oil or salt (home made). Low fat plain yogurt, moderately. No fat salad dressing provided there is no sugar. Soya sauce can be used very sparingly. Herbs and spices in moderation. Fresh garlic-(not raw)- may be used generously.

"Avoid: Oils and fats of any kind (except: fresh organic cold pressed flax seed oil, and Efamol evening primrose oil.) No extra salt, mono sodium glutamate, milk products, processed foods, "party" foods, like potato chips.

"Avoid: Sugars of any kind, glucose, fructose, dextrose, lactose, maltose, etc. We do not want to provide any "fuel" that facilitates the survival of unwanted intestinal fungi/parasites (as these impair a child's ability to assimilate the much needed nutrients, being delivered to the gut.) This note is of great importance, as success with this diet has depended on adherence to these guidelines.

"Methods of preparation

Boiling, grilling, stir frying, steaming and barbecuing.

"Diet supplements

"Before meal: Swedish bitters: 1 teaspoon in a glass of water 10-20 minutes before every meal, to stimulate production of digestive juices.

"With meal: digestive enzymes - whole or sprinkled on food (one type is - Udo Erasmus' label) - to facilitate efficient digestion of foods. Flax seed oil 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon as tolerated (comes in dark bottles, kept in fridge)

"After meal:

1. Multivitamin - 1 capsule (non-sweet, prefer Advance Jr. because it is taken 3 times daily - and this will optimize absorption).

2. Acidophilus (Protec or Caldophilis by Natural Factors, or any enteric coated non-sweet form) - fights the candida infection, by re-introducing desirable intestinal flora.

3. Evening primrose oil - 2 to 6 capsules as tolerated. . . Efamol is best.

4. Kyolic liquid garlic - 1 teaspoon at end of each meal - this inhibits the growth of infecting organisms such as candida.

5. Cod liver oil - 1 capsule only with breakfast - If the gut is particularly infested with the likes of candida then caprylic acid may be added - this is an anti-fungal agent that destroys the candida organism. Organisms such as these can establish themselves in the gut and either consume the much needed nutrients delivered, or prevent them from being absorbed and used by the body - thus causing a state of 'malnutrition'.

"An example of a day's meal

"Breakfast: Porridge, or dry puffed brown rice, or organic brown rice cakes

"Lunch: Steamed or stir fried in water. . . broccoli, zucchini, cabbage, peppers, bok choy, garlic - all on brown rice.

"Dinner: Stir fried vegetables and fish/chicken, etc.

"Erin snacked on brown rice cakes often and loved them. If a child is hungry they can eat these meals as often as they like, provided they are efficiently digesting the food. With extra meals - you may want to include the swedish bitters, digestive enzymes, kyolic garlic and acidophilus.

"A note on vitamin E

"Vitamin E is one of the most important lipid-soluble antioxidant nutrients. Severe vitamin E deficiency can have profound effect on the central nervous system. The classic abnormalities in vitamin E deficiency progress from hyporeflexia, ataxia, limitations in upward gaze and strabismus to long-tract defects, profound muscle weakness and visual field constriction. For example, Vitamin E is required to protect poly-unsaturated fatty acids against auto-oxidation.

"Recently Bieri, Cornash and Hubbard have reviewed the rationale for vitamin E therapy in medical conditions in which the vitamin has positive clinical effects. Vitamin E is a fat-soluble nutrient that works together with glutathione peroxidase to protect regions within the cell of high lipid content against free-radical pathology. Vitamin E deficiency is commonly found in patients with intestinal disorders that are associated with maldigestion and malabsorption.

"Schafer and Arnrich have found that there is a very close relationship between vitamin E status and essential fatty acid metabolism and their effects on pulmonary prostaglandin synthesis.

"The majority of children on Erin's diet-protocol have been on the keto diet and have digestive problems. The fact that the keto diet is a high fat diet means that the diet will by itself deplete, or use up large amounts of vitamin E. It is my theory that the lack of vitamin E could be a major factor in the slow progress seen in some children. It would also explain why adding Omega 3 and 6 to the keto diet does not have a significant effect for the better.

"Warning: Vitamin E like any other nutrient, does not work in isolation in the body, so go slow, don't overdo it. Potentially if one nutrient is given in excess, other related nutrients can be depleted also. For children with digestive problems I suggest using the micellized (water soluble) type of vitamin E. Please only give quantities recommended on the bottle.

"Conclusion

"Knowing if your child is efficiently digesting the food takes using your own powers of observation. Certain physical signs can say a lot! For example - dark circles under the eyes, a skin rash, the presence of undigested food in the faeces.this may take a little learning, but do not be discouraged or afraid that you can't do it.you know your own child best.

If you decide to use Erin's diet - you can contact   Christa Farrell   directly by e-mail or by telephone (604) 732-3488, and she will help you to fine tune the diet.

return to   Other related diets

(checked: 15 November 2002)
(update 1.1: 18 July 2002)
(issue 1: 11 February 1998)