Multiple-Sclerosis Explained

Multiple Sclerosis

The right diet is the key to managing many diseases and to improving general quality of life. For this condition, scientific research has found benefit in the following healthy eating tips.

Swank Diet
Supplementing with 5 grams of cod liver oil daily, eating foods high in linoleic acid from natural vegetable oils, such as sunflower oil and sunflower seeds, while eating a diet low in animal fats and hydrogenated oils may reduce disability and lengthen life.
Swank Diet
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The amount and type of fat eaten may affect both the likelihood of healthy people getting the disease and the outcome of the disease for those already diagnosed with MS. For many years, the leading researcher linking dietary fat to MS risk and progression has been Dr. Roy Swank.
In one of Dr. Swank’s reports, a low-fat diet was recommended to 150 people with MS.³⁵ Although hydrogenated oils, peanut butter, and animal fat (including fat from dairy) were dramatically reduced or eliminated, 5 grams per day of cod liver oil were added, and linoleic acid from vegetable oil was used. After 34 years, the mortality rate among people consuming an average of 17 grams of saturated fat per day was only 31%, compared with 79% among those who consumed a higher average of 25 grams of saturated fat per day. People who began to follow the low-fat diet early in the disease did better than those who changed their eating habits after the disease had progressed.
A survey of people in 36 different countries also suggests that the types of fat people eat may impact MS.³⁶ In that report, people with MS who ate foods high in polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fatty acids were likely to live longer than those who ate more saturated fats. In another survey, researchers gathered information from nearly 400 people (half with MS) over three years.³⁷ They found that people who ate more fish were less likely to develop MS, while those who ate pork, hot dogs, and other foods high in animal (saturated) fats were at greater risk. This same report found consumption of vegetable protein, fruit juice, and foods rich in vitamin C, thiamine, riboflavin, calcium, and potassium correlated with a decreased MS risk. Eating sweets was linked to an increased risk.
Despite research showing improvement with a low-fat diet in some people with MS, the link between foods containing animal fat and MS risk may not necessarily be due to the fat itself. Preliminary evidence from one report revealed an association between eating dairy foods (cows’milk, butter, and cream) and an increased prevalence of MS, yet no link was found between (high fat) cheese and MS in that same report.³⁸
MS has been associated with a variety of dietary components apparently unrelated to fat intake,³⁹ and the link between MS and diet remains poorly understood. Nonetheless, the most consistent links to date appear to involve certain foods containing animal fat. People with MS wishing to pursue a nutritional approach that incorporates an understanding of this research should consult with a doctor familiar with the “Swank diet.”

Gluten-Free
Some people with MS avoid gluten in hopes of diminishing symptoms because a study reported a link between grains and MS development, however, further research is needed to determine effectiveness.
Gluten-Free
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Some people with MS avoid gluten (a protein found in wheat, rye, and barley) in hopes of diminishing symptoms, because a preliminary study reported that consumption of grain (bread and pasta) was linked to development of MS.⁴⁰ However, another trial found an association between eating cereals and breads and reduced MS risk.⁴¹ Other researchers have found gluten sensitivity to be no more common among people with MS than among healthy people.⁴² Thus, the idea that avoiding gluten will help MS remains speculative.