A little more on the conference itself.

I've been meaning to put together a post about the conference Julie and I went to. First of all, this is the second time I've been to this conference, the first being a for a poster presentation in February, 2017 in Tampa, I wrote about it here: https://posthope.org/shannons-page-of-hope/journal/210297/quick-update-and-a-very-very-long-post-about-the-very-informative-keto-conference. This time I learned a whole lot of the same content as before. I did see several people I'd met in 2017, I met a few new vendors, and I heard research results that were only slightly more recent, most of which supported the previous work. The poster we presented in 2017 was titled, "On examining the barriers of entering and maintaining the ketogenic diet for cancer patients vs. non-patients: a trans-theoretical (stages of change) approach," and focused on the following. 1) research has conclusively supported KD as a medical diet for treating illness, particularly cancer. 2) There are barriers to entering and maintaining such a therapy for both patients and non-patients. 3) Identifying what those barriers are through qualitative data collection, designing interventions to eliminate those barriers using a stages of change model. 3) Identifying how vendors and other stakeholders can use these interventions to decrease barriers and make it easier for people to enter and maintain a KD lifestyle. Our paper/poster this year focused on how marketing can be used for rebranding KD, so that people think of it as a metabolic therapy rather than a weight loss fad. For over 100 years, low carb/high fat has been used to treat various illnesses by decreasing inflammation, helping a person become fat adapted so that the body doesn't have to rely on glucose (which is a cause of inflammation and the only food most cancers can metabolize) for energy, and increasing efficiency in fat adapted "normal cells, enhancing physical and mental performance. In our paper/poster, we specifically called for the study of where/how those using food as metabolic therapy in this way get their information, who the most influential stakeholders are in this community, and designing a mass marketing message and strategy, with the intent to rebrand the term "ketogenic diet" as a medical diet.. In fact, our title was "The potential role of marketing in promoting KD as the medical diet it has always been." 

Other big draws for me in submitting to this conference are the following. First, I get to see and catch up with people I've met before, including other GBM patients, researchers who use my data, and other big names in the field. This time I also met some medical doctors, oncologists, etc., who could prove to be valuable contacts at some point. Another benefit is meeting vendors of products that won't spike my blood sugar. You see, being in ketosis for weight loss is easy. Being in therapeutic ketosis to treat illness is a whole different universe. When I can find something yummy that doesn't spike glucose (I have to check every single new thing I eat), that's HUGE. Especially since this is a very expensive way to eat. I figure if it's helping keep my cancer starved, it's worth it to me. However, it may not worth it to those who are looking to lose a few pounds. Regardless, here are some of my favorite vendors:

1. Killer Whey ice cream from Killer Creamery. I have been trying to create my own ice cream since starting this 3 years ago. This is the first time I've had something that really tastes like ice cream and didn't affect my blood sugar at all. If you are interested, use this link (full disclosure, I've become an affiliate so if you buy, I get discounts): http://killerwhey.com?aff=9.

Another company I recommend is Nui (https://eatnui.com/). I met these guys at the first conference but then they were called Keto Kookie. I noticed that they had changed the brand name, have some new flavors, and sleeker packaging. I asked about that at this conference and was told that the guys who started and run the company were on the television show Shark Tank, through which they were able to draw some large investments. They sure have put the money to good use! Other companies I caught up with include Ketonix, SimplyGoodFats (https://www.simplygoodfats.com/), Pruvit (https://dothechange.pruvitnow.com/products/), KetoMojo (https://keto-mojo.com/), Adapt (https://www.adaptyourlife.com/). I promise that if I caught a whiff that these companies were not well run and well intentioned, I would not be recommending them. I've met most of the owners, founders, etc., for these companies and I believe they are first devoted to how they can help people with maintaining a metabolic therapy for treating physical and mental illness. There are some vendors who are geared toward athletes, as this is a metabolic therapy for endurance training, but I don't talk to those vendors as much and cannot fully recommend those guys. However, every company I did mention not only clear my hurdle for reputation, glucose maintenance, and taste, they are all vendors I order from and use regularly. Now, to get started on those research projects and ideas for helping move this community forward...