Although MS is a chronic condition, there are some ways to manage it with drugs and lifestyle changes. There is no complete cure or prevention method, but diet, exercise, medications, and early detection can go a long way in slowing its progression.
Disease-modifying therapies may also help to slow or reduce the overall worsening of disability in people with a type of MS called relapsing remitting MS, and in some people with types called primary and secondary progressive MS, who have relapses.
Multiple sclerosis (MS) triggers that worsen symptoms or cause a relapse can include stress, heart disease and smoking. While some are easier to avoid than others, maintaining a healthy lifestyle and overall health and wellness can have outsized benefits for MS patients.
In many patients, over a span of 5 to 15 years, the attacks begin more indolently, persist more chronically and remit less completely, gradually transforming into a pattern of steady deterioration rather than episodic flares.
Contents. You may have to adapt your daily life if you're diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS), but with the right care and support many people can lead long, active and healthy lives.
Late-onset MS shows similar nervous system changes as early onset MS. But when you develop the condition later in life, it may progress faster. Older adults with MS have a greater risk of the primary progressive form of the condition as well.
Multiple sclerosis is caused by your immune system mistakenly attacking the brain and nerves. It's not clear why this happens but it may be a combination of genetic and environmental factors.
We know early treatment improves long-term health and wellbeing by slowing down the build up of irreversible damage and reducing the number of relapses people experience. Starting MS treatment early is best but if you start later it can also have some benefits.
Can I have multiple sclerosis for years and not know it? Yes. MS can go undetected for years. Research has suggested that many patients experience MS-related symptoms and signs several years before receiving a definite diagnosis of the disease.
Myelin is repaired or replaced by special cells in the brain called oligodendrocytes. These cells are made from a type of stem cell found in the brain, called oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs). And then the damage can be repaired.
A person with benign MS will have few symptoms or loss of ability after having MS for about 15 years, while most people with MS would be expected to have some degree of disability after that amount of time, particularly if their MS went untreated.
Including anti-inflammatory foods such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and omega-3 fatty acids can help reduce inflammation and improve brain function. Foods rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, like salmon and walnuts, have also been linked to better cognitive function and reduced risk of developing MS.
With MS, when you don't stay with your treatment, there's the chance that the disease will continue unchecked. That means your immune system can go on causing inflammation and damage in your central nervous system. And “time is brain”: If there's damage, it can be permanent -- you may not get that function back.
Although more people are being diagnosed with MS today than in the past, the reasons for this are not clear. Likely contributors include greater awareness of the disease, better access to medical care and improved diagnostic capabilities. There is no definitive evidence that the rate of MS is generally on the increase.
MS can occur at any age, but onset usually occurs around 20 and 40 years of age. However, younger and older people can be affected.
Unhealthy Habits
Smoking and alcohol use are modifiable risk factors — they can be altered by personal choice — and are known from large research studies to increase a person's risk of developing MS or of disease progression.
What Does MS Feels Like? A lack of feeling or a pins-and-needles sensation can be the first sign of nerve damage from MS. It usually happens in your face, arms, or legs, and on one side of your body. It tends to go away on its own.
Can stress cause MS? Some people with MS feel that they developed MS as a direct result of some stressful event or trauma. The evidence on this connection is mixed. Some studies do see an effect whilst others don't.
Many people with MS may live for 25 to 35 years or longer after their diagnosis. Survival is improving in MS patients, but chronic medical conditions such as heart disease, lung disease, depression, or diabetes may lower life expectancy in MS.
Effect of MS on Life Span
In the population studied, people with MS had a median life span of 75.9 years, while for people without MS, it was 83.4 years.
Most MS exacerbations last from a few days to several weeks or even months.