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.
Vitamins that seem of particular interest to people with MS include vitamin D, the antioxidant vitamins, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12. Vitamin D Vitamin D is a hormone, or chemical messenger, in the body.
There have been studies that suggest Vitamin D deficiency may play a role in immune system function and the development of auto immune disorders such as Multiple Sclerosis.
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.
Along with whole grains, fresh fruit and veggies, ginger, turmeric, fatty fish, and foods rich in vitamin D, avocados are one of the best things you can shove in your chew hole if you're an MS patient. So, go grab a sackful and make some guacamole and tuna salad.
Overcoming MS diet
The overcoming MS (OMS) diet is a plant-based diet that also includes fish and seafood, but cuts out all processed foods, eggs, meat, dairy, and saturated fats. The diet usually includes daily supplements of flaxseed oil or fish oil.
People who have MS and take vitamin D supplements may have symptoms that aren't as bad as they would be if they didn't take vitamin D. Also, symptoms may occur less often, which may improve quality of life. Taking vitamin D also may lower the risk of relapse and may decrease new scarring in the nervous system.
The human body has an amazing natural ability to repair myelin and get nerves working properly again. 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).
B Vitamins and Methylation
A number of different B vitamins can increase myelin and help your body regenerate myelin. Vitamin B12 plays a key role in the generation and function of myelin. Researchers have found that low vitamin B12 levels are significantly associated with myelin degeneration (66, 68).
You'll Build Muscle Strength and Function
Resistance training (with bodyweight, free weights, or machines) and swimming are effective ways to build and maintain strength in exercisers with MS, says Ashley Davis, C.P.T., a trainer with Marianjoy Rehabilitation Hospital in Wheaton, IL.
Multiple sclerosis is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system. Symptoms range from numbness and tingling to blindness and paralysis, and there is currently no cure for MS.
Our brains have the incredible ability to repair myelin. But, with age and repeated attacks, this stops working so well. And as MS progresses, disability accumulates because nerves are permanently lost. People who have higher levels of myelin repair see a reduction in the progression of their MS.
According to Harvard Health Publishing, an anti-inflammatory diet should include foods like tomatoes, leafy greens such as spinach and kale, and fruits like strawberries, blueberries, cherries, and oranges. There's some evidence that consuming these foods could be beneficial for MS.
Processed foods, dairy products, red meat, and fried foods are some of the most common offenders. These foods can cause inflammation not only in the gut, but also in other parts of the body.
Dairy and MS. Overcoming MS strongly recommends that people with MS avoid dairy in their diet because research shows a high correlation between MS and dairy products, because of the high saturated fat content, and specific proteins in cow's milk.
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.
There is no cure for multiple sclerosis. Treatment typically focuses on speeding recovery from attacks, reducing new radiographic and clinical relapses, slowing the progression of the disease, and managing MS symptoms. Some people have such mild symptoms that no treatment is necessary.
What causes exacerbations? Exacerbations (relapses) are caused by inflammation in the central nervous system (CNS). The inflammation damages the myelin, slowing or disrupting the transmission of nerve impulses and causing the symptoms of MS.
These data suggested that vitamin B12 increased the level of MBP, which plays vital roles in the myelination process and the appropriate formation of myelin thickness and compactness. Meanwhile, LFB staining showed that vitamin B12 restored myelin by reducing the vacuolar changes in the myelin sheath after TBI.
One study noted young people with MS who took a calcium, vitamin D, and magnesium supplement had a reduced number of relapses. The study authors theorized that magnesium could play a role in the growth and stability of myelin.
You need vitamin B12 to help maintain your nerves' myelin sheath. If you are deficient in vitamin B12 you can get symptoms that are similar to some of the symptoms of MS, such as fatigue, weakness, numbness or tingling and problems with memory.