A healthy diet is as important, if not more so, for people with multiple sclerosis than for the rest of the population. The foods you eat affects the way your body functions. At the time of publication, there is no cure for multiple sclerosis, or MS, but dietary modifications and following general recommendations for a balanced, low-fat diet may help reduce MS symptoms.
Antioxidants Foods
Antioxidants may be beneficial or damaging for MS. The evidence is not clear. What is known is that when a person has MS, his body attacks the sheath that covers the nerves. This could progress to permanent deterioration of the nerves, thus damaging the entire central nervous system by interfering with communication between the body and the brain. Antioxidants may help slow or prevent this damage because they fight free radicals, which are substances that occur as a result of oxidation and can damage tissues and lead to disease. The central nervous system is vulnerable to free radical damage; therefore, it is possible that eating foods with antioxidants may be helpful for people with MS. Brightly colored fruits and vegetables are rich in antioxidants. However, according to the Multiple Sclerosis Society, it is possible that antioxidants may actually make MS symptoms worse because some antioxidants stimulate the immune system. Speak with your doctor to determine the amount of antioxidant foods you should consume daily.
Low Saturated Fats
Saturated fats, found mainly animal sources such as in meat and dairy products, have a specific chemical makeup whereby the carbon atoms are saturated with hydrogen atoms, which makes them "bad" or unhealthy fats. Incidences of MS are comparatively lower in Japan and Africa than other parts of the world, which may correlate to the low amounts of saturated fats in their diets. There are several possible reasons as to why a diet low in saturated fats might decrease MS symptoms and incidences, According to NutritionMD, MS patients see a decrease in lesions from taking medication to lower their cholesterol levels; saturated fats increase cholesterol concentrations in the blood. Another possibility is that saturated fats interfere with the process of turning essential fatty acids into their long-chain derivatives. These long-chain derivatives influence the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, which play key roles in multiple sclerosis. Yet a third relation is that high saturated fat diets decrease the availability of oxygen to the central nervous system. This leads to the activation of lysing enzymes in cells, which might make it easier for toxins to get through the blood-brain barrier.
Dairy
According to NutritionMD, studies have repeatedly associated the consumption of dairy products with MS prevalence. There are two possible explanations: Milk contains a protein called butyrophilin to which most people develop an oral tolerance at a young age. However, MS patients possess an increased antibody response to myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein; these antibodies cross-react with butyophilin. It's theorized that people who do not develop this tolerance when young, perhaps due to a gastrointestinal infection, are susceptible to MS. Another possible correlation is that calcium from dairy sources might suppress the production of an active hormone form of vitamin D known as 1,25(OH)2D3, which has a protective effect against MS.
Fatty Acids Foods
Fish oil products and fatty fish, such as mackerel, salmon and herring, contain high doses of omega-3 fatty acids. Canola oil, flaxseeds and flaxseed oil, and walnuts and walnut oil provide smaller amounts of omega-3 fatty acids. Unlike saturated fats, these fatty acids are not considered "bad" fats because they help lower cholesterol levels, reducing the risk of heart disease. According to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, there is some evidence indicating that consuming omega-3s can result in fewer relapses of MS, but more studies are needed to fully understand and confirm this theory.
References
- Multiple Sclerosis Society: Vitamins and minerals
- NutritionMD: Multiple Sclerosis: Nutritional Considerations
- MayoClinic.com; Multiple Sclerosis: Definition; December 2010
- National Multiple Scelerosis Society; The Omega-3 Factor; Allen C. Bowling, M.D., Ph.D. and Tom Stewart, JD, PA-C
- National Multiple Scelerosis Society: Nutrition and Diet
- American Heart Association: Saturated Fats
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