Did I start this article with the intention of titling it “MS is NOT a disease!”. But I rescinded this notion after checking the dictionary definition of the word Disease. So can we cure MS is a better topic for discussion?
Disease: a disordered or incorrectly functioning organ, part, structure, or system of the body resulting from the effect of genetic or developmental errors, infection, poisons, nutritional deficiency or imbalance, toxicity, or unfavourable environmental factors; illness; sickness; ailment.
I had assumed that a disease was caused by some external bacteria or virus. This was wrong, it can be caused by a multitude of things including environmental factors and/or nutritional deficiency. I still maintain that MS is not a disease in the conventional sense, therefore there is NOT a cure for Multiple Sclerosis. MS is a biological malfunction of the body.
However, while there is no cure for MS. There are actions you can take to minimise the effects of the disease.
Furthermore, I have come to the conclusion that there is no magic pill to repair our broken bodies. Pharmaceuticals can treat specific symptoms. But, they do NOT improve the underlying malady. If anything, these drugs can worsen it.
After a great deal of reading and educating myself in the ways of MS. I now believe that I was probably born with the condition. This most probably came about as our society moved towards more processed foods.
The Multiple Sclerosis Diet to cure MS
I am reading and following The Wahls Protocol by Dr Terry Wahls with some success. Some of her writing, some of her teaching implore us to look at this condition in an entirely new way. She expounds her belief that the symptoms of MS, and indeed many other chronic conditions, arise from a malfunction in the body at a cellular level.
She believes that the mitochondria are not operating efficiently causing the normal cell replacement in a healthy body to fail. This inefficient operation is due, she believes, to our current modern diet which is not providing our cells with the essential nutrients for optimum operation.
To remedy this malfunction we must address the underlying cause by completely rethinking the way we fuel our complex bodies. You would not expect that shiny new Ferrari to run well on paraffin so, why do we expect our bodies to run well on junk food?
If we accept that Multiple Sclerosis is a disease. And Multiple Sclerosis is just a name given to a collection of symptoms. Then if we can eradicate the symptoms, have we cured the disease? That would be, surely, to cure MS.
The diet begins by excluding dairy products and gluten which appears, initially, to be a huge change in our normal dietary habits. It means giving up bread, pastry, pasta, ice cream and many other things I eat frequently, as I’m sure do many others. But why gluten and dairy? We have been brought up being told these are healthy foods.
Both gluten and lactose contain a protein very similar in structure to the myelin protein. So, the argument is, that the immune system is confusing lactose or gluten with myelin.
ScotMS
Changing our View of Food
It is possible that an infection or a slight food intolerance from many years ago has triggered our immune system to be sensitive to this protein.
Whatever the trigger might have been, the immune system is now attacking this protein and cannot differentiate between the alien protein and the resident myelin protein.
It is, therefore, my belief that in MS the autoimmune system is NOT attacking the myelin, it is instead targeting either the gluten protein OR the lactose protein and the myelin is the collateral damage in this fight. This has two profound implications:
- There is no cure for MS, because it does not require a cure, it requires a change in dietary habit that will allow the natural regeneration of the myelin.
- If this dietary change is effective then MS has been self-inflicted by our own ignorance of our bodily needs.
The Wahls Protocol, by definition, is a radical new way to treat chronic conditions and will require making substantive and permanent changes to the way we view food and our health.
The improvement in my health by following the Wahls Protocol is nothing short of amazing. I have seen improvements with my fatigue, my balance and mobility, and my vision.
I did not cure MS.
But, I can think more clearly, I am far more lucid and my memory is returning. The healing is not complete, but my journey to recovery is gathering pace and I now believe I can recover from Multiple Sclerosis.
Did we cure MS?
We cannot cure MS. But, if the diet is the problem then it needs no cure. If diet solves my problem then I have spent all my life poisoning myself! I will report back but, the report may be many years in preparation.
I will conclude this article with my usual disclaimer: I am not a doctor, I am a patient. It is hoped this post has provided you with food for thought and some enjoyment.
References
MS Trust Types of Diet
Diet Tips for Multiple Sclerosis
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