Chesham Bowling Club’s Charity 2020
Our Chosen charity this year is The Daisy Garland Charity, which was set up in 2004 after little Daisy Garland died aged 6 as a result of SUDEP ( sudden and unexplained death in epilepsy patients).Their aim is to offer help and support to those whose lives are touched by drug resistant epilepsy.They help in too many ways to list here, but perhaps one of the most notable is the funding of Ketogenic Dieticians to work in NHS hospitals throughout the UK. Each Daisy Garland Ketogenic dietitian costs up to £45.000 per annum.
Along with dietary and menu advice, the biggest impact the Daisy Garland Charity has had in our lives is the funding of the ketogenic dieticians at Great Ormond Street Hospital who have supported us.( Testimonial SH Buckinghamshire)
So what is a Ketogenic diet?
In layman’s terms it is a low carbohydrate protein rich diet. The Ketogenic diet is a mainstream dietary therapy used to treat epilepsy. It was popular in the 1920s and 30’s. It then lost popularity with the introduction of new anticonvulsant drugs, which are effective in the control of epilepsy for most individuals. However 20-30% of sufferers fail to achieve such control and for this group and for children in particular the diet has proved to be an effective method of epilepsy management. The Ketogenic diet reduces seizure frequency by more than 50% in half of the patients who try it and by more than 90% in a third of patients. Three-quarters of children who respond do so within two weeks. Children with refractory epilepsy are more likely to benefit from the ketogenic diet than from trying another anticonvulsant drug.
However, it isn’t a one size fits all scenario hence the need for specialist dieticians who devise diets for each individual. Age, weight, activity levels, culture, and food preferences all affect the meal plan.
A little about epilepsy:
Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders after stroke, affecting around 50 million people worldwide. It is diagnosed in a person having recurrent, unprovoked seizures. These occur when cortical neurons fire excessively, hypersynchronously, or both, leading to temporary disruption of normal brain function. Epilepsy is considered refractory (not yielding to treatment) when two or three anticonvulsant drugs have failed to control it. About 60% of patients achieve control of their epilepsy with the first drug they use, whereas around 30% do not achieve control with drugs. When drugs fail, other options include epilepsy surgery, vagus nerve stimulation, and the ketogenic diet.
The Daisy Garland Charity is a small family run, national, U.K. registered charity.
Our Chosen charity this year is The Daisy Garland Charity, which was set up in 2004 after little Daisy Garland died aged 6 as a result of SUDEP ( sudden and unexplained death in epilepsy patients).Their aim is to offer help and support to those whose lives are touched by drug resistant epilepsy.They help in too many ways to list here, but perhaps one of the most notable is the funding of Ketogenic Dieticians to work in NHS hospitals throughout the UK. Each Daisy Garland Ketogenic dietitian costs up to £45.000 per annum.
Along with dietary and menu advice, the biggest impact the Daisy Garland Charity has had in our lives is the funding of the ketogenic dieticians at Great Ormond Street Hospital who have supported us.( Testimonial SH Buckinghamshire)
So what is a Ketogenic diet?
In layman’s terms it is a low carbohydrate protein rich diet. The Ketogenic diet is a mainstream dietary therapy used to treat epilepsy. It was popular in the 1920s and 30’s. It then lost popularity with the introduction of new anticonvulsant drugs, which are effective in the control of epilepsy for most individuals. However 20-30% of sufferers fail to achieve such control and for this group and for children in particular the diet has proved to be an effective method of epilepsy management. The Ketogenic diet reduces seizure frequency by more than 50% in half of the patients who try it and by more than 90% in a third of patients. Three-quarters of children who respond do so within two weeks. Children with refractory epilepsy are more likely to benefit from the ketogenic diet than from trying another anticonvulsant drug.
However, it isn’t a one size fits all scenario hence the need for specialist dieticians who devise diets for each individual. Age, weight, activity levels, culture, and food preferences all affect the meal plan.
A little about epilepsy:
Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders after stroke, affecting around 50 million people worldwide. It is diagnosed in a person having recurrent, unprovoked seizures. These occur when cortical neurons fire excessively, hypersynchronously, or both, leading to temporary disruption of normal brain function. Epilepsy is considered refractory (not yielding to treatment) when two or three anticonvulsant drugs have failed to control it. About 60% of patients achieve control of their epilepsy with the first drug they use, whereas around 30% do not achieve control with drugs. When drugs fail, other options include epilepsy surgery, vagus nerve stimulation, and the ketogenic diet.
The Daisy Garland Charity is a small family run, national, U.K. registered charity.