Ketones & Alzheimer’s
Based on the work of Mary Newport, a physician and author who has written extensively about ketones and Alzheimer’s disease
Dr. Mary Newport became interested in ketones as a possible approach to Alzheimer's after her husband, Steve, developed early-onset Alzheimer's disease. She learned that while an Alzheimer's brain may have difficulty using glucose efficiently, it can still use ketones as an alternative source of energy.
Newport began giving her husband coconut oil and later MCT oil, which the liver can convert into ketones. She reported improvements in his alertness, mood, and cognitive abilities. His experience led her to advocate for research into ketogenic and metabolic therapies for Alzheimer's.
Her husband's response was an individual case, not proof of an effective treatment. However, subsequent clinical research has provided some evidence that MCT supplementation and ketogenic interventions may produce modest cognitive benefits in some people with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer's disease. The evidence is still limited, and these approaches are not established cures for Alzheimer's.
Why Ketones Might Help
The brain normally relies heavily on glucose for energy. In Alzheimer’s disease, the brain’s ability to use glucose is often impaired—sometimes years before significant symptoms appear.
Ketones are produced when the body metabolizes fat and can provide the brain with an alternative fuel. Medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) are particularly effective at raising blood ketone levels.
This has led researchers to investigate whether MCT oil, ketogenic diets, or other ways of increasing ketones might help compensate for the brain’s impaired glucose metabolism.
Dr. Newport’s Experience
In 2008, Dr. Newport began giving her husband coconut oil after learning about research involving ketones and Alzheimer’s disease. She reported noticeable improvements, including greater alertness, better mood, and improvement in some cognitive abilities.
She later described their experience and the science behind her approach in Alzheimer’s Disease: What If There Was a Cure? The Story of Ketones.
Newport has continued to advocate for clinical research into ketones, MCTs, and other metabolic approaches to Alzheimer’s disease.
What the Research Shows
Research into ketogenic therapies for Alzheimer’s has expanded considerably since Dr. Newport first told her husband’s story. Clinical trials and systematic reviews suggest that ketogenic diets, MCT supplementation, and other approaches that raise ketone levels may produce modest improvements in some measures of cognition in people with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s disease.
The results are encouraging but not definitive. Benefits have not been consistent across all studies, and researchers are still trying to determine who is most likely to benefit, which approach works best, and whether benefits can be sustained.
Ketogenic diets and MCTs should therefore be viewed as promising metabolic approaches rather than proven treatments for Alzheimer’s disease.
Learn More
Book
Dr. Newport describes her experience using coconut oil and MCT oil with her husband, who had Alzheimer’s disease, and explores the research on ketones as an alternative fuel for the brain.
Videos
Dr. Newport tells the story of her husband’s Alzheimer’s disease and explains how his experience led her to explore ketogenic diets, MCT oil, and ketones as potential approaches to supporting brain energy.
Dr. Newport discusses reports from families who have tried coconut or MCT oil for dementia and explains why ketones are being studied as an alternative fuel for the Alzheimer’s brain.
Dr. Newport explains how MCT oil and coconut oil produce ketones differently and why she believes combining them may provide a more sustained source of alternative fuel for the brain.