The diet activates a sub-set of T cells in the lungs that trap the virus and stops it spreading. The discovery is something of a scientific first because the T cells, known as gamma delta, hadn’t been thought to be part of the immune system’s response to influenza.
Researchers from Yale University made the discovery when they fed two diets – the keto and a high-carb diet – to laboratory mice who were then infected with the influenza virus. Those on the keto diet had a higher survival rate because it triggered the release of the gamma delta cells, while the standard high-carb diet didn’t have the same protective effect.
The release of the T cells must have something to do with the way the body burns fat, said lead researcher Visha Dixit.
The keto diet includes meat, fish, poultry and non-starchy vegetables.
(Source: Science Immunology, 2019; 4: eaav2026; doi: 10.1126/sciimmunol.aav2026)
