Why Am I Struggling to Reverse Multiple Sclerosis?

Last Updated on November 30, 2023 by Cathy

Researchers discovered the lack of good bacteria in the gut plays a huge role in autoimmune diseases including multiple sclerosis (MS). Eating mostly meat and not enough fruits and vegetables has a negative effect on gut health. Eating a healthy diet makes it possible to reverse multiple sclerosis.

What you eat is the main contributor to an unhealthy gut. Eating a clean diet is very powerful and creates health and wellness in your body. What you eat can either be very healing for your body or it can trigger inflammation and disease. There is a reversing multiple sclerosis cheat sheet at the bottom of this post.

But what if you’re already eating a healthy diet including foods for a healthy gut? Plus, you’re managing your stress, sleeping eight hours, exercising, and taking supplements. And your MS is STILL progressing?

Then what? For most people, diet isn’t the only culprit. There are many triggers to MS and you need to address each one in order to make a full recovery.

Don’t get discouraged! It only means you need to do a little more detective work to find YOUR triggers. The key to stopping and reversing MS is addressing each of your triggers.

Triggers to MS:

• Poor Diet 
• Infections (bacteria, parasites, viruses, and yeast overgrowth)
• Environmental toxins (heavy metals, mold, pesticides, etc.)
• Chronic stress 
• Hormones (adrenaline, cortisol, etc.)

Diet to Reverse Multiple Sclerosis

If you have an autoimmune disease you more than likely have a leaky gut. A leaky gut happens when your gut lining becomes damaged and creates cracks or holes. This allows undigested food particles and toxins to pass through into the bloodstream.

The Standard American Diet (SAD) is low in fiber and high in processed foods creating an unhealthy gut. Other factors include antibiotics, conventional meats, pesticides, refined sugar, stress, and more. Healing your gut should be your first step.

People with autoimmune diseases often have food sensitivities. In order to heal you need to also remove these foods. Foods such as dairy, gluten, and fructose (sugar) are common.

You also need to remove any uncommon food sensitivities such as grapes or coconut. Try an elimination diet or get tested if you are having a hard time figuring out which foods are still causing you problems.

Chronic Infections

Common chronic infections include bacteria, Epstein-Barr virus, Lyme disease, parasites, and yeast overgrowth. Infections can either trigger MS or they can trigger flares. You may need to get lab work and contact your doctor for help.

Many of these chronic infections can remain dormant in your body for many years or even decades. Stress can cause these dormant infections to resurface. They can cause fatigue, memory loss, numbness, and sleep disorders.

Environmental Toxins

Toxins such as heavy metals, mold, and pesticides, are harmful to your body. They come from the food you eat, the air you breathe, the personal body products you use, and the water you drink.

How to remove environmental toxins:

• Air filters
• Apply natural personal body products
• Avoid plastics
• Clean with natural green products
• Drink detox teas (dandelion, green tea, milk thistle)
• Drinking water
• Eat foods such as apples (organic), broccoli, cilantro, garlic, parsley, and turmeric
• Stop using non-stick pans
• Use glass containers instead of plastic
• Water filters

You can also get tested for chemical exposures, heavy metals, and mold exposure. Help your body out by using different detox methods. Such as taking deep breaths, dry brushing, Epsom-salt baths, exercising, and herbal teas.

Chronic Stress

It’s impossible to avoid stress. But when you’re always stressed it can cause havoc on your entire body. Emotional, mental, or physical stress can trigger inflammation and lower your body’s ability to heal. Chronic stress puts a strain on your immune system and causes flares.

Chronic stress can lead to your adrenal glands becoming exhausted. It’s known as adrenal fatigue. Unfortunately, conventional doctors don’t recognize this as a problem but it is commonly associated with MS.

When your adrenal glands wear out they are unable to produce proper amounts of hormones. Mainly the hormone cortisol. This can lead to brain fog, depression, fatigue, low energy, sleep problems, and weakness.

It’s extremely important to learn how to manage your stress. Find time to relax and take deep breaths throughout the day. Go for a walk, watch a funny movie, meditate, soak in a warm tub, and address what is stressing you out.

Genetics

Thanks to DNA testing you can now find out if MS, or another health issue, is in your DNA. MS doesn’t run in my family, I’m the only one with MS.

My functional medicine doctor recommended I get a DNA test. So I decided to use 23andMe and was very shocked to see what was in my genes.

Here is a picture showing that I have a three times higher risk for MS:

You can’t change the genetic code you inherited from each of your parents. But you can change the expression of your genes. Researchers discovered genes are also influenced by diet, environment, stress, and toxins.

Homozygous is a mutation of the gene passed down from both parents. A heterozygous is a mutation of only one copy of the gene passed down from one parent.

I have a heterozygous mutation (half) on both of my Vitamin D Receptor (VDR) genes. This means my body has a hard time absorbing vitamin D into my body. I used to have a vitamin D deficiency but I compensate by taking a higher dose of vitamin D each day. You can see it in the picture below the yellow (+/-) indicates heterozygous.

The picture below shows my vitamin D level before taking any supplements. My conventional doctor told me it was in the “normal” range. My functional medical doctor told me “Don’t except a “normal” result from your doctor, get the actual number,” it should be between 60-100 ng/mL.

Striving for Balance

Creating an environment for your body to heal is essential to your recovery. I’ll admit, trying to reverse multiple sclerosis it’s hard! I grew up eating your typical American diet full of refined sugar. Plus I’ve taken many rounds of antibiotics starting as a baby which destroyed my gut health.

After a while, eating healthy becomes normal and your gut begins to repair. Plus, the food tastes much better, I wouldn’t want to go back to sugary processed foods.

Recognizing the triggers that contributed to your immune dysfunction is an important step. When you address the root causes, you stop the progression and even reverse your symptoms.

Besides diet, also includes exercising, managing stress, and getting enough good quality sleep. These are the three areas I also really struggled with. I know from experience it takes a lot of effort especially when you feel drained.

It’s essential to put yourself first and don’t feel guilty about it. Take control of your situation and be proactive toward your health. Contact a functional medicine provider if you need some help.

Reversing Multiple Sclerosis

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Why Am I Struggling to Reverse Multiple Sclerosis?