Hi everyone
ive decided to try and eat my way through my ms, recently a Greek Doctor whilst I was away on holiday told me I should avoid red meat and avoid Dairy and eat plenty of different vegetables each day. This has got me thinking where do I start.?
I was wondering if any of you guys have found any positives of eliminating certain foods, I’m hoping to improve my fatigue as this is the main symptom I have ongoing.
Any advice and tips would be much appreciated.
Ann. X
Hi Ann,
The mediterranean way of eating ( I wont call it a diet because that’s a short term fix, not a long term lifestyle change) is well renowned for its healthy benefits, and involves eating lots of fish, fruit vegetables pulses and olive oil. White meat like chicken is eaten a great deal , red meat very little. The odd slug of red wine with your food is also of benefit ( that if you happen to like red wine!)
I follow this way of eating, partly because I am half Italian, but have recently taken it on with a bit more rigour. I eat very little , if any, red meat, but have plenty of chicken, fish ( salmon and tuna are especial favourites because they are oily) fresh fruit and vegetables and at least 6 pieces of fruit a day as a substitute for crisps and chocolate, which I no longer eat. Neither do I have butter or any kind of bread spread; I have bread rarely, but when I do, its usually stone baked rolls containing olives (which you can get from Lidl’s)I have also cut out takeaway food in its entirety, and no longer snack between meals. I don’t drink much coffee - perhaps only a cup per day, if at all- and no alcohol, other than a small glass of red wine ( I don’t drink this daily, because it gives me headaches) perhaps once a week.I drink plenty of bottled water( I use a mango water bottle, which measures your water intake and is portable and durable, which you can find on amazon) I have coconut milk on cereals and skimmed milk in coffee when (I do drink it, but I only need a pint of this a week and seldom finish that!) I’ve also cut out sugar, though I will have granulated sweetener in tea.
I must admit that I felt a bit rubbish for a while, because it was almost like a detox, persistence paid off and now I feel really good. My fatigue levels have greatly improved, as have other symptoms such as pain and spasticity. I also lost 3 stone in weight!
If you are unsure where to start, just try googling the mediterranean diet -loads of info will come up about it - its well worth a try!
If you need any help, give me a shout,
Nia x
i love Greek food. a lot of their meals use lamb but give me a greek salad and i’m happy. their tomato salad is my favourite. and i love olives with anything.
Stick with fresh fish, fruit and vegetables, and you won’t go far wrong. Anything that improves general health must be good for MS too.
Oh, and an Italian bloodline sounds great, if you can arrange it.
you will get plenty of answers to this thread and none of them alike. Atkins? Ketogenic? Slimming world? All good, all been tried by someone one with MS. Fact is you can’t “eat your way out of MS”. Its not a dietary problem. Its a neurologicAL condition. HOWEVER, eating healthy will improve your general health. losing weight is better for the heart, the joints and many things. I do Slimming World - not a diet - more a lifestyle change and I have lost weight, despite not being able to exercise much. Stay as active as you can for as long as you can. Swimming, tai chi, whatever floats your boat.
Hi Red,
I agree, I don’t think you can eat your way out of MS, but healthy eating, as you say can make you feel so much better; if some of that happens to include a bit of symptom relief , even if it is transient, then so much the better.
I agree with exercise too, being of the ‘neurons that fire together wire together’ school of thought; I am becoming increasingly dependant on my chair, but I do try to keep walking with a rollator, coupled to regular physio, just to keep those neurons from fizzling out completely!
Whammel, Tuscan blood comes in particularly, handy ( or so my family thinks).
Nia.
Not Roggio by any chance?
half Italian - is the other half Welsh - Nia being a good Welsh name.?
Interesting research going on re. the link between the gut and the brain in conditions like m.s. and Parkinsons.
Seemingly the gut microbiota is implicated in Parkinsons – google it.
Whilst these conditions cause neurological problems perhaps the root of the problem is in our digestive system. Maybe it’s time the neuros were abandoned ( they aint done much for us to date) and the ‘digestive system’ specialists had ago at it.
Hi Whammel,
No not Roggio - nowhere in Lucca, I’m afraid!
Hi Krakowian,
Good Guess!!
Nia.
o’r Gogledd ?? siarad Cymraeg??
The chances of us being related have just reduced significantly. Oh well it was a bit of a longshot.
Hi Nia i too am half an Italian, mum was from Italy and the best cook ever. We were all brought up on Mediterranean diet all six of us. I like you rarely ever eat red meat, only time is a bit of lean beef in a spag bol sauce but i don’t eat pasta so much as i am gluten free now and i found the alternatives disgusting.
I eat more or less the same as you. I love olives but i go for the oil and herb ones. I love fish salmon yummy and tuna. I really only eat chicken and very occasionally will have a slow cooked lamb shank in a tomato herb sauce with red wine dash lol.
I have no idea if eating this way helps MS, but i eat tons of fruit and veg every day and am partial to dry figs. I dont eat bread much only a slice of gluten free wholemeal toast for breakfast. I am dairy free as i am now for some reason a bit sensitive to cow milk, so i drink Koko milk which i love.
I have stayed the same weight more or less since i got sick even when sedantary.
Mums family live all over italy, milan, gorgonzola and recanati.