Glutathione Depletion

In multiple sclerosis, the cells are under so much stress that there main protective shield, glutathione (GSH) gets worn down and oxidative stress damages the mitochondria and the DNA leading to cell death. Poor blood sugar control and high environmental toxin exposure are known to deplete glutathione levels and impair mitochondrial function.

A key pathway that maintains cellular glutathione levels and the ability of the cell to adapt to stress is called Keap1-Nrf2. When this pathway breaks down it causes increased levels of oxidative stress within the cell that leads to the glutathione depletion and mitochondrial dysfunction.

Anti-Inflammatory Diet & Lifestyle

Anti-inflammatory foods help to modulate the immune system and reduce inflammatory activity in the body. Great anti-inflammatory foods include coconut products, avocados, olive oil, berries & phytonutrient rich vegetables. Healthy meat sources such as grass-fed beef, wild game, wild salmon, organic poultry and organic eggs are great if the gut can tolerate them.

It is advisable for anyone with chronic inflammation to include organic vegetable juices, fermented foods and herbal teas in their diet. Homemade sauerkraut, apple cider vinegar, coconut water kefir, and kimchi are great. Begin with small doses of all of these and add more if you tolerate them well.

Organ meats such as grass-fed liver, heart, etc. are rich in mitochondrial support nutrients. Powerful herbs such as turmeric, ginger, garlic, onion, rosemary, thyme, cinnamon, & oregano among others should be used as much as possible to improve immune coordination.

Consuming lots of sulfur based onions, garlic, cruciferous veggies on a daily basis and getting high quality seaweed in the form of kelp can be extremely helpful. Using purified fish oils to boost up omega 3 levels is also very important.

Upper Cervical Subluxation and MS:

People with MS are highly likely to have neurological dysfunction in their upper neck. Subluxation, or neurological interference, at the bottom of the skull, C1 & C2 alters blood supply, stress hormone release and immune modulation throughout the body. Research has found this problem to be very common in MS patients.

Upper cervical subluxation leads to increased states of pain, fatigue, anxiety and accelerated stress as well as mal-coordinated immunity.

Well trained chiropractors can analyze these regions of the spine and give specific corrective adjustments to restore balance and optimal neurological expression in these regions. This reduces the stress response and improves endorphin release. This improves the individual's pain levels, stress tolerance, immune function and overall well-being.

21 Strategies to Beat Multiple Sclerosis

Here are the best action steps to get started with on your journey to prevent and/or beat Multiple Sclerosis. You should always consult with your physician before stopping or changing medications or taking on new health strategies.

Additionally, you should be working with a functional health practitioner to help guide you through these strategies. This is not an exhaustive list and there are other natural therapeutic strategies that I and functional health practitioners will utilize to help individuals with Multiple Sclerosis.

1) Change Your Diet: Follow an Anti-Inflammatory nutrition plan here and consider the auto-immune diet and/or the low-oxalate diet.

2) Test For Food Sensitivities: You can do a biofeedback test to determine what foods are causing stress in your system and an elimination diet to test how you are responding to eliminating certain foods for periods of time.

3) Reduce Stress: Find ways to reduce stressful activities and enjoy more peace and calm. Learn to thrive under stress by reading this article here

4) Improve Your Sleep: Sleeping a high quality 8-9 hours each night is key to healing and improving brain function. Follow the steps in this article to improve your sleep.

5) Power Up Your Nrf2 Pathway: This is the key genetic anti-oxidant pathway. Adding in clinical dosages of resveratrol, curcumin, sulfuraphane and Green tea (ECGC) can be extraordinarily beneficial. I use Nrf2 Power here to improve this pathway. I always get my chronic hypertensive patients on Nrf2 Power.

6) Include Magnesium & B Vitamin Rich Foods: Magnesium helps to improve blood sugar signaling patterns and protects the blood-brain barrier. The best magnesium and B vitamin rich foods include dark green leafy veggies, grass-fed dairy, raw cacao and pumpkin seeds. Consume these as tolerated. You can also do Epsom salt baths to boost your magnesium levels.

7) Focus on Deep Breathing: Improving your posture, seeing a high quality chiropractor and optimizing your breathing patterns is highly recommended. Follow these tips here to improve your breathing patterns.

8) Use Anti-Oxidant Rich Herbs: Add turmeric, ginger, oregano, garlic, basil, thyme and rosemary to as many dishes as possible and drink organic herbal teas on a regular basis.

9) Ground Your Body: In our society we are surrounded by toxic electromagnetic frequency's (EMF's). These EMF's increase stress within our body and alter neurotransmitter function. By going outside daily and walking barefoot on grass, dirt or sand you absorb natural EMF's from the ground that balance your electrical rhythms. Follow the steps in this article here.

10) Supplement With Omega 3's: Omega 3 fatty acids and in particular the long chain variety EPA and DHA are critical for stabilizing blood sugar, reducing inflammation and pain. Consume grass-fed meat, grass-fed butter, wild-caught fish and spirulina to get it in your diet.

It is also advisable to supplement with 2-5 grams daily of EPA/DHA along with 200 mg of GLA. Clinically, I use ProEFA to boost up omega 3's.

11) Improve Your Mitochondria: The mitochondria are the energy powerhouses of every cell. When someone has MS it is a clinical sign that they have dysfunctional activity going on in the mitochondria.

Support your mitochondria with clinical doses of CoQ10, L-carnitine, N-acetyl cysteine and Lipoic acid. The supplement I use with my neurodegenerative clients is Brain Supercharge which has the clinically effective dosages of each of these key nutrients and more.

12) See a Chiropractor: Have a full neurological exam and see a high quality chiropractor to help reduce stress on the nervous system and enhance overall well-being.

13) Juice Your Veggies: Juicing is one of the best ways to get high quality anti-oxidants and powerful phytonutrients into your system. Here is my article on Best Juicing strategies.

14) Intermittent Fasting: Going 16 hours between dinner and breakfast is one of the best ways to improve mitochondrial production. Your body improves energy efficiency by increasing and strengthening the mitochondria during periods of fasting. This is also one of the best ways to reduce oxidative stress and inflammation.

Consume your meals in an 8 hour window such as 11am – 7pm. Read this article for more info on fasting.

15) Optimize Your Vitamin D: Low vitamin D3 is associated with neurological inflammation and neurodegenerative conditions (37). Be sure to increase your vitamin D through good amounts of regular sun exposure and/or taking a high quality vitamin D3/K2 supplement.

16) Practice Oil Pulling: Oil pulling helps to reduce the microbial load in your mouth. This takes stress off of the immune system and reduces inflammation levels throughout the body. Read more about oil pulling here and practice this 2x daily.

17) Get a Home Water Filtration System: Very important to avoid the chloride, fluoride, pesticides, heavy metals, etc. that are found in tap water. Use a good whole home water filtration system as discussed in this article here

18) Use Essential Oils: The anti-oxidant content and aromatherapy benefits of essential oils help to improve oxygenation and reduce the harmful effects of oxidative stress throughout the body. Some of my favorites include lavendar,peppermint, chamomile and sweet orange among others.

Put a drop on your hands and mix together and then cover your nose and inhale the healing vapors. This will stimulate your brain and increase blood flow to your cranium.

19) Low Intensity Movement: A sedentary lifestyle reduces cerebrospinal fluid flow and can lead to increased oxidative stress in the brain. Throughout the day, get a lot of low-intensity movement such as walking, light cycling, playing, etc. Regular movement will help reduce inflammation and boost the development of new neurons in the brain.

20) Improve Your Gut Motility: Improving bowel movement frequency and consistency is a key detoxification concept. Consuming an anti-inflammatory diet with good fiber sources such as chia seed and flax seed, using bone broths, fermented foods and probiotics will improve bowel motility.

21) Use an Advanced Brain and Nervous System Nutrient Support Pack: This is designed to get you the key nutrients that are we have already discussed that are necessary for optimal function while reducing auto-immunity and improving neurological expression.