Keto Lifestyle
Charlie Foundation Celebrates 25th Year Anniversary!
OUR TIMELINE
The Charlie Foundation for Ketogenic Therapies is proud to announce its 25th year of advancing awareness of Ketogenic Therapeutics! The Foundation launched in 1994 after twenty-month-old Charlie Abrahams’ severe epilepsy was cured by a Ketogenic Diet. Charlie had suffered through thousands of seizures, seven anti-epileptic medications, and a failed brain surgery before his family found the diet. Although the diet’s remarkable history of efficacy had been well documented in medical literature, not one of the five pediatric neurologists who had seen Charlie mentioned it. When the Abrahams saw the almost miraculous effect of the diet and realized it was on the verge of extinction, they formed The Charlie Foundation. Their hope was that other people with epilepsy would learn this incredible alternative to seizures, drugs and surgery.
In 1993 Charlie was one of perhaps a dozen people in the world on a ketogenic diet. Today there are over two-hundred epilepsy centers around the globe with Ketogenic Diet programs. Tens of thousands have experienced seizure reduction and many have been cured. The diet is also being used as a treatment for a variety of other neurological disorders including early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, autism, and brain cancer. Just as remarkably, Ketogenic Therapies are showing benefit for both brain and body health.
We hope that others will be empowered by Charlie’s story and understand that to a great extent each of us is in control of his or her health— as well as the medical destinies and health of our children.
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It is wonderful that Charlie has found a successful treatment for his epilepsy. However, he’s not “cured.” Epilepsy is not curable and it is irresponsible to imply that it is right now. I’ve been seizure free for years despite being told that my epilepsy is intractable, however my seizures became active again out of nowhere in 2018. To be cured, it wouldn’t come back. “Cure” is a very loose word. I wish Charlie the best, and hope that his seizures continue to stay dormant. One day we will be epilepsy free, for now, I wish us all to be seizure free
Thank you for writing. We are certainly sorry to hear your seizures have returned. Out of curiosity, were you ever on a ketogenic diet?
If so, for how long?
This is Dr. Eric Kossoff from Johns Hopkins’ response to the question of whether the ketogenic diet can be considered a cure for epilepsy:
https://youtu.be/QZWS6Hyef7g
I would also add that many professionals in the epilepsy community believe that when appropriate, epilepsy surgery can be curative.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us if you ever have questions! -Jim Abrahams
I have been using a ketogenic diet for jusy over a year. I do not have epilepsy but my brain fog is gone, my blood sugars and down into the pre-diabetic range and I no longer need blood pressure. I live in Montana where nearly all of our medical professionals think this diet is dangerous. It is like beating your head against a brick wall
trying to talk to them. (Oh, I have also lost about 100 pounds. So thank you Jim Abraham for getting this information back out to the people who really need it.
It’s nothing short of amazing what you’ve accomplished in bringing the diet option to the world! I remember getting a call at work from a Jim Abrahams who was crying and telling me about Charlie and talking so fast my head was spinning . I never did ask Jim how he tracked me down-especially at my work! I knew then he was going to to do everything in his power to make the diet known but had no idea it would be to this extent! Congrats to ALL who’ve made this possible!
Congratulations for the outstanding job and great impact to epilepsy and other disorders.
Ketogenic diet therapy has now be provided at over 60 tertiary hospitals in mainland China supported by Charlie Foundation and Johns Hopkins, thanks so much!
WOW and CONGRATULATIONS! Proving that indeed a loving father and mother can change the world and make it better for all of us. Thanks Jim and Nancy and all that helped make it happen. Stuart Turnansky
Congrats on all of your work and success!
Congratulations to Jim and everyone who is part of the Charlie Foundation! I am in awe of the great work you do, and will be sharing this timeline on both of my Facebook pages!