How Diet can impact Multiple Sclerosis

01 February 2019

For people living with multiple sclerosis, diet is important and regulating what you eat can have a profound effect on how the body functions and how well you feel

Managing your diet can also provide some measure of feeling more in control of the condition, and enables positive choices for dealing with MS. As well as this, the impact of diet on symptom management can be important.

One example of this is bowel function. Constipation, for instance, can be troublesome and often leads to higher levels of spasticity (or muscle stiffness), and is accompanied by a general lack of wellbeing and discomfort. Using diet to help manage bowel function can work well for some people and may reduce the occasional cycles of constipation and bloating followed by temporary loss of bowel control.

Only you will know how to regulate such symptoms yourself and no amount of dietary advice will replace your own trial-and-error approach. If this does not help, we advise you to speak to your continence advisor or MS Nurse.

Other examples of the importance of regulating diet involve weight management and the avoidance of swallowing problems. If your MS limits the degree of exercise you can do, it follows that in some cases diets rich in carbohydrates (sugary foods, bread, cake etc.) may result in weight gain. On the other hand, adopting a very low food intake approach risks having low energy and greater fatigue. Instead, adopting a rounded healthy diet, that encourages eating more fruits and vegetables, will provide benefits without undue weight gain.

Finding a balanced intake of macro-nutrients is therefore. Use the ‘five a day’ approach by eating at least five portions of fruit and vegetable snacks per day to increase your nutritional intake.

For guidance, one portion of fruit or vegetables is 80g.

Advice for those with swallowing problems

If you have occasional swallowing problems, advice from a speech therapist or MS Nurse can help you identify the type of food preparation methods that help to avoid swallowing difficulties.

Bear in mind that some medicines commonly used in the management of MS symptoms can influence speech and swallowing. Talk to your MS nurse or a dietician about this.

So, is there an “ideal” MS diet?

From a research perspective, we would suggest that no single dietary approach or specific foods to be embraced or avoided will have a profound impact on the progress of MS. As we noted above, eating a sensible varied diet can help in a variety of ways.

Although there is growing research on the benefits of the mediterrannean diet and on 'anti-inflammatory' foods, these continue to support the evidence that eating a range of foods rich in vitamins and nutrients and low in saturated fats and refined sugars, is of primary benefit.

This means including plenty of good lean sources of protein, vegetables, whole grains and unsaturated fats, while also moderating intake of refined cereals, dairy and sugar.

A word on supplements

If you actively dislike some foods rich in essential vitamins or other important dietary ingredients (e.g. Vitamin D and calcium in dairy products), using reliable off-the-shelf supplements is an option. Higher doses of Vitamin C for example can help to avoid bladder infections, as excess ascorbic acid (Vit. C) is excreted and sits in the bladder, helping to overcome some bacterial infections. However, this can also increase bladder sensitivity so your own trial and error methods will help you work out the right balance for you.

It is always wise to take advice on the use of supplements as “more” is not always best. It is also important to note that some supplements may contra-indicate against certain prescribed medications.

You can explore our MS Symptom pages for more information on diet and treatments, including information on our Bladder and Bowel and FACETS courses.