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Our Kids - Meet Sam

Sam, now 10, used to experience more than 100 seizures per day. He needed to wear a hockey helmet to protect his head in case he fell while seizing. When Sam turned two, his parents feared he would suffer from cognitive delays or never walk or talk. The Ketogenic diet changed everything.

Sam

Sam, 10, Seizures

Sam’s seizures originated from multiple areas of his brain, which made him ineligible for surgical treatment. More than three years ago, after experimenting with countless combinations of medications, doctors at The Hospital for Sick Children decided to put Sam on the Ketogenic diet.

The Ketogenic diet is used to treat children with intractable epilepsy, which is epilepsy that cannot be adequately controlled by medications. The diet works to trick the body into reacting as if it is fasting. It causes the body to burn fats rather than carbohydrates and replaces glucose with ketone bodies as an energy source. This puts the body in a state of ketosis.

Within days of initiating the diet, Sam’s seizure activity dropped significantly. As a result, Sam can attend school in a regular classroom and he participates in sport activities like skiing, soccer and gymnastics.

Sam’s diet has become a lifestyle and has greatly improved his quality of life. His family remains extremely grateful to SickKids for all they did for Sam.

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