Multiple sclerosis: Mediterranean diet reduces risk of cognitive impairment

A scientific study demonstrates the link between nutrition and cognitive functions in people with MS

A preliminary study, published on March 1, 2023, has suggested that people with multiple sclerosis (MS) who eat a Mediterranean diet may have a lower risk of memory and thinking skills problems than those who do not eat this diet. . The study will be presented at the 75th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology, to be held in Boston from April 22 to 27, 2023. The Mediterranean diet includes a high intake of vegetables, legumes, fruit, fish and healthy fats such as those of olive oil, and a low intake of dairy products, meats and saturated fatty acids. “It’s exciting to see that we can help people with multiple sclerosis maintain better cognition,” said study author Ilana Katz Sand, Ph. following a Mediterranean-type diet. Cognitive difficulties are very common in MS and often worsen over time, even with treatment with disease-modifying therapies. People living with MS are very interested in ways they can be proactive lifestyle-wise to help improve their outcomes.

Study results confirm that the Mediterranean diet reduces the risk of cognitive impairment by 20% in people with MS

The study involved 563 people with MS, who filled out a questionnaire to demonstrate how well they followed the Mediterranean diet. A score from zero to 14 was assigned based on their responses, with higher scores given to those who followed the diet more closely. The researchers then divided the participants into four groups based on diet scores: the lowest group had scores of zero to four, and the highest group had scores of nine or higher. Participants also took three tests to assess their thinking and memory skills. A total of 108 people, or 19%, had cognitive impairment. The researchers found that theand people who followed the Mediterranean diet more closely had a 20% lower risk of cognitive impairment compared to people who did not follow the diet. Among the subjects in the group with the lowest diet score, 34% had cognitive impairment, compared with 13% of the subjects in the group with the highest diet score. The relationship was stronger among people with progressive MS, in whom the disease steadily gets worse, than in those with relapsing-remitting MS, in whom the disease flares up and then goes into periods of remission. Importantly, the results remained unchanged even when the researchers made strict adjustments for other factors that might influence risk for cognitive impairment, such as socioeconomic status, smoking, body mass index, high blood pressure, and weight. “Among health-related factors, the degree to which the diet aligned with the Mediterranean pattern was by far the strongest predictor of people’s cognition scores and their compliance with the study criteria for cognitive impairment,” he said. said Katz Sand, who added that longer studies that follow people over time and well-designed interventional clinical trials are needed to confirm the findings. One limitation of the study is that the tests were done only once.