Recommendations
It is interesting to note that different people have come to the same conclusions about the best diet for those with multiple sclerosis whilst coming from a completely different direction. Since there is very little that can be done for the condition with conventional medicine it is worth considering all the options. There is plenty of evidence, generally, about how diet affects our health and some specifically in relation to multiple sclerosis. There are many other conditions where a special diet is recommended, which is often much the same as discussed here. Whilst it is very hard to change your diet to the degree suggested it is not too difficult once you have got used to it and there are plenty of cookery books for special diets available as well as many foods in the health shop.There has been a great amount of research recently on nutrition and multiple sclerosis but there is a need for large scale research on complete diets like those listed above. In the meantime I feel that all doctors should advise their patients all their patients (whatever their health condition) to try to follow the generally recommended healthy eating guidelines such as low salt, sugar and saturated fat and high intake of fruit, vegetables and unsaturated fats. They should also give some advice on label reading to make this easier for the patients. They should also be asked to notice if what they eat affects the severity of the symptoms of the condition.
After analysing the information for dietary guidelines for use with multiple sclerosis I recommend cutting back on, dairy products (milk, cheese and butter), gluten (wheat, rye and barley), aspartame, meat, saturated fats, sugar and synthetic chemicals, increasing intake of fish (particularly oily fish), unsaturated fats, fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts and organic produce. In addition a good quality multi nutrient (containing the vitamins and minerals listed) should be taken along with some probiotics and some fatty acids (including omega-3 and omega-6), ginkgo biloba and DHEA.
Ideally every person with multiple sclerosis should be given the information contained in this essay. From there they can make their own decisions. I have also just read that it will soon be possible to get fatty acids on prescription for those with heart conditions. Maybe this, and possibly other supplements should also be considered for other conditions, such as multiple sclerosis.
SAMPLE MENUS
Breakfast
Rice, quinoa or millet cereal with fruit and milk alternative
Fruit smoothie
Melon
Grapefruit
Fruit salad
Gluten free bread or biscuits with nut butter
Lunch
Tuna salad
Chicken vegetable soup
Gluten free bread or biscuits with nut butter
Fruit juice
Fresh fruit
DinnerStir fry chicken with nuts and vegetables
Steamed fish with steamed vegetables
Chicken with salad
Snacks
Fruit (fresh or dried)
Vegetables - maybe with dips
Nuts (excluding peanuts)
Seeds (such as sunflower or pumpkin)
Rice cakes
DIETARY GUIDELINES
Cut back on:
- dairy products - cheese, milk and butter, goat's and sheep's products are preferable to cow's milk products
- gluten - mainly wheat, barley and rye
- aspartame
- meat
- saturated fats
- sugar
- salt
- synthetic chemicals
Increase intake of:
- fish - particularly oily fish
- unsaturated fats
- fruits
- vegetables
- seeds
- nuts
- organic produce
Recommended supplements:- good quality multi nutrient (Solgar, Biocare, Higher Nature, Lamberts)
- this will contain most of the nutrients discussed in this essay.
- probiotics - containing a range of different probiotics including acidophilus and bifidus
- fatty acids - containing omega-3 and omega-6
- ginkgo biloba
- DHEA
Generally agreed nutritional guidelines for everyone advise us that to maintain our body and nervous system in good health we need to eat more fruit and vegetables and fibre, and less saturated fat. Advice to those with multiple sclerosis is basically to follow good nutrition, while adding extra sources of essential fatty acids (EFAs). Oily fish are rich sources of two EFA's in the Omega 3 group, and pure vegetable oils, such as Sunflower and Safflower oils, rich sources of linoleic acid, which is part of the Omega 6 group.
A good balanced diet will achieve two objectives:
~Supply the body with the nutrients it needs to keep healthy, while avoiding potentially damaging ingredients.
~Prevent excessive weight gain - a hazard for those who are less mobile than they used to be (and even the "healthy" population is reported to be getting heavier all the time)
There is much scientific evidence indicating that an appropriate nutritional balance and diet have a positive role in MS. Studies looking at the area of the world where MS occurs have shown that its incidence is closely correlated to the consumption of saturated fats. These are present in full fat dairy products, meat and confectionery. The brain and nervous system are composed of approximately 60% fat, a large proportion of which is derived from the essential fatty acids. Investigations have shown that the levels of essential fatty acids in the blood have tended to be low in some people with long-standing MS. One of the essential fatty acids is linoleic acid which is found in polyunsaturated oils such as sunflower and safflower. It was demonstrated that patients given unsaturated fats had a reduced number and severity of relapses and Professor R. L. Swank in the USA has been advising MS people to adhere to the low-fat diet for 30 years. His findings of reduced relapses and slowing of the disease progression compare favourably with the natural history of patients on a normal diet. In the diet recommended by the Therapy Centres, the consumption of essential fatty acids is increased and that of saturated fats decreased. This nutritional program also includes increased consumption of vitamins, minerals, trace elements and fibre which are important for general health. A three-year research study on this diet indicated reduced frequency and duration of relapses plus no significant deterioration in patient's condition.A trial (April 2002) at the state University of New York at Buffalo "suggests that a very low fat diet (15%) with supplemental Omega3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid was very well tolerated and may have a beneficial effect on disease parameters in patients with RR-MS"
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