Mynie Gustav Peterman (5 March 1896 – 14 October 1971) was an American

pediatrician Pediatrics (American English) also spelled paediatrics (British English), is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, pediatrics covers many of their youth ...

known for formulating the classic

ketogenic diet The ketogenic diet is a high-fat, adequate-protein, low-carbohydrate diet, low-carbohydrate dietary therapy that in conventional medicine is used mainly to treat hard-to-control (refractory) epilepsy in children. The diet forces the body to b ...

(CKD) to treat epilepsy in children.

Biography

Peterman was born in

Merrill, Wisconsin Merrill is a city in and the county seat of Lincoln County, Wisconsin, United States. It is located to the south of and adjacent to the Merrill (town), Wisconsin, Town of Merrill. The population was 9,347, according to the 2020 United States cen ...

.Cook, Robert Cecil. (1934). ''Who's Who in American Education: A Biographical Dictionary of Eminent Living Educators of the United States, Volumes 5–6''. Who's Who in American Education. p. 579 He attended Merrill Public School (1901–1909), followed by Merrill High School (1909–1913). He obtained his Sc.B. from

University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...

in 1918, A.M. from

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) is a private research university in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1853 by a group of civic leaders and named for George Washington, the university spans 355 acres across its Danforth ...

in 1919 and M.D. from

Washington University School of Medicine Washington University School of Medicine (WashU Medicine) is the medical school of Washington University in St. Louis, located in the Central West End neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1891, the School of Medicine shares a ca ...

in 1920. He was Assistant in Paediatrics at

Mayo Clinic Mayo Clinic () is a Nonprofit organization, private American Academic health science centre, academic Medical centers in the United States, medical center focused on integrated health care, healthcare, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science ...

(1923–1925). He was Director of Paediatrics at

Marquette University Marquette University () is a Private university, private Jesuit research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It was established as Marquette College on August 28, 1881, by John Henni, the first Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Ar ...

and Director of the Medical Laboratories of the Children's Hospital of Milwaukee (1925–1933). During 1924–1925, Peterman reported results from the Mayo Clinic on the effectiveness of the ketogenic diet to treat epilepsy in children.Wheless, J.W. (2004)
''History and Origin of the Ketogenic Diet''
In Stafstrom, C.E, Rho, J. M. ''Epilepsy and the Ketogenic Diet''. Humana Press. pp. 31-50. Peterman’s ketogenic diet was described as consisting of "one gram of protein per kilogram of body weight in children, 10–15 g of carbohydrate per day, and the remainder of the calories in fat". Peterman observed that excess

ketosis Ketosis is a metabolic state characterized by elevated levels of ketone bodies in the blood or urine. Physiological ketosis is a normal response to low glucose availability. In physiological ketosis, ketones in the blood are elevated above bas ...

could cause nausea and vomiting which could be relieved by his patients drinking

orange juice Orange juice is a liquid extract of the orange (fruit), orange tree fruit, produced by squeezing or reaming oranges. It comes in several different varieties, including blood orange, navel oranges, valencia orange, clementine, and tangerine. As ...

. In 1925, Peterman reported that 95% of 37 young patients had improved seizure control on the ketogenic diet. He was a consultant in paediatrics to the

United States Public Health Service The United States Public Health Service (USPHS or PHS) is a collection of agencies of the Department of Health and Human Services which manages public health, containing nine out of the department's twelve operating divisions. The assistant s ...

(1954–1964). Peterman was a member of the

American Academy of Pediatrics The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is the largest professional association of pediatricians in the United States. It is headquartered in Itasca, Illinois, and maintains an office in Washington, D.C. The AAP has published hundreds of poli ...

and was a Vice-President of the American chapter of the

International League Against Epilepsy The International League Against Epilepsy ("ILAE") was started in 1909. Its goal is to improve the lives of people with epilepsy Epilepsy is a group of Non-communicable disease, non-communicable Neurological disorder, neurological disorders ch ...

Personal life

Peterman married Mildred Mackenzie on 29 September 1924, they had two children. He died on 14 October 1971 in

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

Selected publications

''The Ketogenic Diet in the Treatment of Epilepsy''
(1924)
''The Ketogenic Diet in Epilepsy''
(1925)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Peterman, Mynie Gustav 1896 births 1971 deaths 20th-century American physicians American people of Swedish descent American medical writers American pediatricians Low-carbohydrate diet advocates Marquette University faculty Physicians of the Mayo Clinic University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Washington University in St. Louis alumni Washington University School of Medicine alumni