At any stage of multiple sclerosis (MS), there’s almost certainly something you can do to improve your symptoms and quality of life.
That’s true whether you’re newly diagnosed and are searching for everything you can do to make your MS better. Or you’ve had it for a while and want to do more than just take your meds. Or you’ve been living with it for longer than you can remember and don’t know what else to do.
There is no science behind these delineations, but I’m sure we see ourselves in (mostly) one of those three categories.
I’d like to think of myself in that middle category, but 24 years on from diagnosis and another 15 since my first symptoms, I’m really probably in the latter category. And, like most of you, I’d like to do what I can while I can to keep the wolf on the other side of the door for as long as I practicably can.
So I’ve done some research, and here are five things that have some pretty good proof as to being beneficial to people with MS — and even if they don’t prove themselves as helpful as we hope, it’s not like they’ll cause any harm.
1. Quit Smoking if You Smoke
Research shows that smoking tobacco (particularly when coupled with obesity) speeds MS progression. It is also accepted science that smoking lowers cognitive performance in people with MS.
The risk of reaching beyond Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) 4 was 21 percent higher for smokers versus nonsmokers.
As explained by the Multiple Sclerosis Trust, EDSS 4 is defined as “Significant disability but self-sufficient and up and about some 12 hours a day. Able to walk without aid or rest for 500 meters.”
If you smoke, quit. And if you don’t smoke, don’t start!
2. Try Intermittent Fasting With Calorie Restriction
Research results are coming fast on this topic, as it’s one that many are interested in, not just people with MS.
In a recent study, subjects with MS were instructed to restrict their calorie intake for two nonconsecutive days per week for 12 weeks.
During these fasting days, participants were asked to consume only nonstarchy vegetables (raw or cooked), eaten plain or with oil (maximum 2 tablespoons per day), vinegar, lemon juice, or seasonings; and noncaloric drinks, with total intake not to exceed 500 calories per day.
The results showed several beneficial effects, including in some measures of cognitive performance.
3. Eat More Fish
A recently published study in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry found that consistent increased consumption of both lean and oily fish reduced the risk of progression in more than 2,700 patients enrolled in the Swedish MS registry.
Those who consistently ate fish either weekly or daily had significantly better progression outcomes than those who consumed fish “never or seldom or one to three times per month.”
Researchers did not differentiate the benefits between lean and oily fish, nor did they discuss any differences in frozen or tinned fish.
So eat more fish!
4. Do High-Intensity Interval Exercise
On one of our first Unspeakable Bits webcasts for MS Ireland, we discussed diet and exercise in relation to MS. In that conversation, Jens Bansi, PhD, a sports medicine, rehabilitation medicine, and neurology researcher in Switzerland, talked about the significant benefits of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) for people with MS.
In HIIT workouts, periods of intense exercise are alternated with periods of rest.
Several studies, including one Dr. Bansi collaborated on, have shown that to be the case. One study concluded that “high-intensity training is a safe and feasible modality for people with MS” and that “adults with MS may achieve walking improvements through high-intensity training.”
As you would with any new type of exercise, get your doctor’s okay if you have any concerns about the safety of exercise for you, and start slowly.
5. Get Outside!
A daily 20 minutes outside (in the sun with part of our skin exposed, ideally) has numerous benefits for people with MS.
One may be getting a daily dose of vitamin D, since our bodies synthesize vitamin D when our skin is exposed to ultraviolet B rays from the sun. Whether and how that will affect our MS symptoms or progression is still not clear, according to an article in the National MS Society’s magazine, Momentum. But getting enough is still important for strong bones and a healthy immune system.
Some people with MS have issues with heat, and others take medication that could make them more sensitive to sunlight. So try to get out in the mornings before it’s too warm and bright, but do get out.
Even if it’s not for the vitamin D dose, getting outside can reduce stress and just make you feel better.
Can’t Hurt, Might Help
This is, of course, not a comprehensive list of things you can do that show potential for helping your MS. It is, however, a start, and even if the hoped-for results are lower than expected, they can’t hurt and may do some other part of our overall health some good.
Wishing you and your family the best of health.
Cheers,
Trevis
