Ketogenic diet helps tame flu virus

Mice fed a high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet like the Keto regimen were better able to combat the flu virus than mice fed food high in carbohydrates, according to a new study.

Influenza virus 
Credit@ Axel Kock

The ketogenic diet which includes meat, fish, poultry and non-starchy vegetables activates a subset of T cells in the lungs, enhancing mucus production from airway cells that can effectively trap the virus. 

The ketogenic is a popular diet choice in recent years for those looking to lose weight and show off their abs quickly. A type of immune system activators called inflammasomes can cause harmful immune system responses in their host. Researchers said that a keto diet could help block the formation of inflammasomes. 

Mice fed a ketogenic diet and infected with the influenza virus had a higher survival rate than mice on a high-carb normal diet. The ketogenic diet triggered the release of gamma delta T cells, which produce mucus in the cell linings of the lung which the high-carbohydrate diet did not. 

When mice were bred without the gene that codes for gamma delta T cells, the ketogenic diet provided no protection against the influenza virus. 

This study shows that the way the body burns fat to produce ketone bodies from the food we eat can fuel the immune system to fight flu infection. 

Ref: EL Goldberg, RD Molony, E Kudo, S Sidorov, Y Kong, VD Dixit, A Iwasaki, Ketogenic diet activates protective Gamma Delta T cell responses against influenza virus infection. Science Immunology, 2019; 4(41): eaav2026. 

DOI: 10.1126/sciimmunol.aav2016