Some yoga classes are designed just for people with MS. A well-balanced diet , low in empty calories and high in nutrients and fiber, will help you manage your overall health. The healthier your diet, the better your overall health. You should try to limit or avoid :. If you have other medical conditions, ask your doctor if you should follow a special diet or take any dietary supplements.
Check out these additional tips for eating an MS-friendly diet. The exact cause of MS is still unknown. However, there are several risk factors for developing MS. If you have mobility issues, falling may put you at an increased risk for bone fractures. Having other conditions, such as arthritis and osteoporosis , can complicate matters. Mobility issues can lead to a lack of physical activity, which can cause other health problems.
Fatigue and mobility issues may also have an effect on sexual function. Discover more effects of MS. In a study, however, the Society estimated that around 1 million Americans have MS. Check out more MS facts and statistics here. You should focus on communicating your concerns with your doctor, learning all you can about MS, and discovering what makes you feel your best. Many people with MS even choose to share their challenges and coping strategies through in-person or online support groups.
Download it for iPhone or Android. Read this article in Spanish. Neurologist Barbara S. Giesser, MD, explains how multiple sclerosis affects the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerve. She also looks at the cognitive…. Ardra Shephard has lived with multiple sclerosis for 17 years. While she has a handle on managing it now, her first-year post-diagnosis was difficult….
This imaging test allows doctors to see MS lesions in your central…. Learning how your MS symptoms might impact your daily life and how to approach treatment can help you adjust to your diagnosis and your new normal.
Healthline spoke with medical professionals and people with MS to put together all the information people who are newly diagnosed need to know.
Rania was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at This usually affects one eye at a time. Inflammation of the optic nerve can result in pain when the eye moves. Vision problems are an early sign of MS. Gait and mobility changes: MS can change the way people walk due to muscle weakness and problems with balance, dizziness, and fatigue. Emotional changes and depression: Demyelination and nerve fiber damage in the brain can trigger emotional changes.
Learning and memory problems: These can make it difficult to concentrate, plan, learn, prioritize, and multitask. Pain: Pain is a common symptom in MS. Neuropathic pain is directly due to MS. Other types of pain occur because of weakness or stiffness of muscles. There is also a higher risk of urinary tract infections , reduced activity, and loss of mobility. In the later stages, people may experience changes in perception and thinking, as well as sensitivity to heat.
MS affects individuals differently. For some, it starts with a subtle sensation, and their symptoms do not progress for months or years. Sometimes, symptoms worsen rapidly, within weeks or months. A few people will only have mild symptoms, and others will experience significant changes that lead to disability.
However, most people will experience times when symptoms worsen and then get better. Find out more about the early signs of MS here. Scientists do not really know what causes MS, but risk factors include:. Genetic factors: Susceptibility may pass down in the genes, but scientists believe an environmental trigger is also necessary for MS to develop, even in people with specific genetic features. Smoking: People who smoke appear to be more likely to develop MS.
They also tend to have more lesions and brain shrinkage than non-smokers. Other viruses that may play a role include human herpes virus type 6 HHV6 and mycoplasma pneumonia. Vitamin D deficiency: MS is more common among people who have less exposure to bright sunlight, which is necessary for the body to create vitamin D.
Some experts think that low levels of vitamin D may affect the way the immune system works. Vitamin B12 deficiency: The body uses vitamin B when it produces myelin. A lack of this vitamin may increase the risk of neurological diseases such as MS.
Previous theories have included exposure to canine distemper, physical trauma, or aspartame, an artificial sweetener, but there is no evidence to support these. How does MS affect women? Click here to find out more. No single test can confirm a diagnosis, so a doctor will use several strategies when deciding whether a person meets the criteria for a diagnosis. If the doctor diagnoses MS, they will need to identify what type it is and whether it is active or not. The person may need more tests in the future to check for further changes.
Learn more here about the tests for diagnosing MS. There is no cure for MS, but treatment is available that can slow the progression of the disease, reduce the number and severity of relapses, and relieve symptoms. Some people also use complementary and alternative therapies, but research does not always confirm the usefulness of these.
These work by changing the way the immune system functions. A doctor may give some of these by mouth, by injection, or as an infusion. How often the person needs to take them and whether they can do this at home will depend on the drug. The following DMTs currently have approval :.
Current guidelines recommend a person begin using these drugs when in the early stages of MS, as there is a good chance that they can slow the progression of MS, especially if the person takes them when symptoms are not yet severe.
Learn More. From fundraising events to influencing policy to giving financially, everyone can make a difference. Walk MS. Advocate for Change. In Your Area. Volunteer Your Time. Become a Research Champion. Raise Awareness. Bike MS. After many years usually decades , many, but not all, people with relapsing remitting MS go on to develop secondary progressive MS. In this type of MS, symptoms gradually worsen over time without obvious attacks.
Some people continue to have infrequent relapses during this stage. Around half of people with relapsing remitting MS will develop secondary progressive MS within 15 to 20 years, and the risk of this happening increases the longer you have the condition. Just over 1 in 10 people with the condition start their MS with a gradual worsening of symptoms. In primary progressive MS, symptoms gradually worsen and accumulate over several years, and there are no periods of remission, though people often have periods where their condition appears to stabilise.
MS is an autoimmune condition. This is when something goes wrong with the immune system and it mistakenly attacks a healthy part of the body — in this case, the brain or spinal cord of the nervous system. In MS, the immune system attacks the layer that surrounds and protects the nerves called the myelin sheath. This damages and scars the sheath, and potentially the underlying nerves, meaning that messages travelling along the nerves become slowed or disrupted. Exactly what causes the immune system to act in this way is unclear, but most experts think a combination of genetic and environmental factors is involved.
There's currently no cure for MS, but a number of treatments can help control the condition.
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