The British Library- beautiful

I'm going to book a tour of The British Library. It's marvellous and there is free membership for students. Normally it costs a lot to be a member. The tour itself is £8.00 for students. It's a beautiful building and there are numerous free exhibitions. I adore this library and it's such a privilege to have access to it. 

On the campaign trail...

Today was a very insightful first day of campaigning. I learned a great deal through engaging with a variety of students. I have received some useful feedback on my manifesto and will be sharing their views anonymously on the university radio station. 

This is obviously a democratic process so I will take in all views and try my best to take appropriate action. It is not a popularity contest for me and I find it a privilege to represent a diverse range of students, some of which have truly remarkable stories. 

It is difficult to represent a group of students who fall into the ambiguous category of 'disabled', but I will try my best to do the position justice if elected.

Ketogenic snack to take away

I often do this for simplicity and it doesn't require any cleaning up. All it requires is: 

1 egg

40g ghee

A small container (ideally not glass or plastic although in this example that's what I use)

1 Saucepan

Salt and pepper optional of course

http://www.youtube.com/attribution_link?a=JQnitJEi8wg&u=/watch%3Fv%3Dab5xjr5WvzQ%26feature%3Dem-upload_owner

Here's a breakdown of the macros:

I just like having snacks that I don't have to think about preparing, it's simple and easy. 

Keto kidneys, Satya Project, manifestos, and New Scientist magazine

It's safe to say it's been a busy week for me but I've thoroughly enjoyed it! 

I thought I would take time to update my blog while I prepare what I like to call these 'keto kidneys'- just look at the huge lumps of fat that surround them! 

I'm not a great fan of kidney (they can taste of urine- yuck!! So I will wash them thoroughly and I'm going to cook them in the oven with some herbs for 15 minutes, hoping that they don't explode. I am eating this for the nutritional benefits and so that my kidneys can remain healthy. I believe that if you eat healthy kidneys you will be provided with the nutrients required to ensure optimal health of your own kidneys. The fat is actually delicious!! These are lamb kidneys. 

Grass fed kidney fat- I chopped up the fat to be mixed with the kidneys and meat juice below. All I did was to have this in the oven at 180 for 12 minutes. It's very ketogenic, nutritious, and there is no need to add extra fat. 

I didn't add mixed herbs in the end and mixed 1 chopped up kidney with the fat and natural meat juice from the cooking process. Still an 'acquired taste' but the fatty bits and cooking method make it more palatable. It's doing me good in terms of my health so I'm happy and I enjoy the fatty bits added with sea salt. This meal cost me £1.85 and will be my only meal of the day. 

On Wednesday I had a meeting with Joye Marie Leventhal, founder of Satya Project. 

Satya Project is:

'An international biotechnology company focusing on discovery and development of advanced therapeutics for chronic illnesses and pain.'

http://www.satyaproject.org/

I met Joye at the medical cannabis talk at my university and her work is truly admirable. We had a long chat about my approach to my disease and how I have been controlling my epilepsy. I have started a society at university called 'The Progressive Medicine Society' and I am delighted that she has accepted my invitation to present as an external speaker. 

Soon I will be campaigning for the role of Disability Officer at my university. I am passionate about creating an environment that enables disabled students to thrive in all aspects of university life and I'm really looking forward to the role. 

Finally I am looking forward to being interviewed for New Scientist magazine on Monday. I will be detailing the metabolic strategy I have utilised to manage my disease and control my epilepsy without medication. My oncologist will also be getting involved, as will researchers from Imperial College London. I will discuss the practicalities of this approach as well as discussing what is happening at the cellular level as a response to this novel treatment approach. I will go on to discuss the tweaks and adaptations I have made. 

I've been a fan of New Scientist for years so it's kind of surreal doing this but I just want the message out there. New Scientist love brain stuff and rightly so because it's fascinating and our brains are what make us who we are. It is simply remarkable and we may never be able to fathom it's complexities and adaptability... or at least perhaps not in my lifetime and I plan on living a long time yet! 

New Scientist magazine and future opportunities

Very enjoyable evening with New Scientist Live hosted by Imperial College London. It gave me great insight into my chosen career path and I made connections with Hal Hodson who is a journalist at New Scientist. We will be meeting up soon to talk about my story and ketogenic diets for cancer management and my future work with my oncologist to devise clinical trials using well planned and structured metabolic approaches. 

New Scientist is one of my favourite magazines and it means a lot to me to have the opportunity to talk to them about this metabolic approach to neurological disease. The last thing I want is for people to think of this as an anecdote so when we look at what is happening at the cellular level and when we can see how active I am at university and with the neurological team at Charing Cross Hospital it can only help me to achieve what I hope. I thank Imperial College Lobdon for getting involved in this research and for hosting such useful, interesting events. I will be looking forward to attending more!...

I also got a free goodie bag and a geeky New Scientist t-shirt. ;)