May 20, 2022 News by Lindsey Shapiro, PhD Genetic Indicators of High BMI in Childhood Linked to Higher MS Risk Genetic variants that contribute to a high body mass index (BMI) during childhood are associated withĀ an increased risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), a study found. The relationship is likely influenced by the fact that a higher BMI in childhood is linked to obesity in adulthood and a ālonger…
March 3, 2021 News by Marisa Wexler, MS #ACTRIMS2021 – Dietary Restriction May Limit Severity of MS Editorās note: TheĀ Multiple Sclerosis News Today news team is providing in-depth and unparalleled coverage of the virtual ACTRIMS Forum 2021, Feb. 25ā27. GoĀ hereĀ to see the latest stories from the conference. Dietary restriction can lessen the severity of multiple sclerosis (MS) by modulating levels of fat-related hormones, new research…
March 2, 2021 News by Marisa Wexler, MS #ACTRIMS2021 – Leptin’s Pro-inflammatory Effects May Link Obesity to MS Editorās note: TheĀ Multiple Sclerosis News Today news team is providing in-depth and unparalleled coverage of the virtual ACTRIMS Forum 2021, Feb. 25ā27. GoĀ hereĀ to see all the latest stories from the conference. The fat-related hormone leptin has pro-inflammatory effects on immune cells, new data show, findings that help in better…
January 7, 2021 News by Aisha I Abdullah PhD Obesity, High BMI Linked to Greater MS Risk, Autoimmune Activity Obesity and a higher body mass index (BMI) are associated with both increased multiple sclerosis (MS) risk and harmful autoimmune activity that is induced by leptin, a hormone secreted by fat cells, a study finds. These results indicate that leptin, which helps regulate…
August 28, 2020 News by Joana Carvalho, PhD Youthful Obesity May Account for 14% of MS Cases in US by 2035 The number of new cases of multiple sclerosis (MS) possibly due toĀ obesity in childhood and adolescence could rise by Ā 14% in the U.S. over the next 15 years, and by 10% in the U.K., a study reported. While the worldwideĀ risk of MS linked to obesity in early life…
July 6, 2020 News by David Melamed, PhD Higher BMI as Teenagers Raises Risk of MS for Men, Study Finds Young men, ages 16 to 20, with a higher the body mass index (BMI) are at greater their risk of being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) later in life, regardless of physical fitness, according to a Swedish study. Risk rose across “the entire BMI range,” its researchers reported,…
July 1, 2020 News by Joana Carvalho, PhD Exposure to DMTs Does Not Increase Risk of Severe COVID-19 in MS Patients, Study Finds Exposure to disease-modifying therapies does not increaseĀ multiple sclerosis (MS) patients’ risk of developing a severe form of COVID-19, according to a registry-based study. However, MS patients who are older, obese, or have severe neurological impairments have a greater risk of developing a severe form of the disease. Findings…
June 18, 2020 News by InĆŖs Martins, PhD Obesity Linked to Faster Optic Nerve Atrophy, Study Finds Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients who are obese experience faster degeneration in optic nerve tissue than do those of normal weight, an observational study found. Since optic nerve degeneration correlates with greater nerve loss in the brain, measuring changes in this tissue may be a feasible way to determine…
April 29, 2020 News by InĆŖs Martins, PhD Obesity Linked to Faster Optic Nerve Atrophy in MS Patients Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients who are obese experience a faster degeneration in their optic nerve tissue than those of normal weight, a study found. Since optic neuropathy correlates with greater nerve cell loss in the brain, tracking changes to the retina may be a feasible way to determine…
March 6, 2020 News by Ana Pena PhD #ACTRIMS2020 – What We Now Know About Diet and MS What science has told us about how diet might influence a person’s risk ofĀ multiple sclerosis and a patient’s disease course was the topic of discussion at a recent MS conference. Ellen Mowry, MD, a researcher and professor of neurology atĀ John Hopkins,Ā also reviewed some of the dietary…
January 9, 2020 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Weight Loss Diets Rare Among Obese MS Patients Despite Link to Disease Progression, Study Suggests Despite the fact that being obese or overweight may worsenĀ multiple sclerosis (MS) prognosis, people with the neurodegenerative disease are not more likely to adopt weight loss diets, a small study suggests. The study, āObesity, dieting, and multiple sclerosis,ā was published in the journal Multiple Sclerosis and Related…
January 8, 2020 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD Study Links FTO Gene Mutation to Obesity, Increased Disability in MS Patients A common mutation in the fat-mass obesityĀ (FTO) gene is associated with obesity and increased disability in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a Kuwaiti study. The data, which showed no link between this mutation and an increased risk of MS, highlights the need for more studies about…
July 19, 2019 News by Alice MelĆ£o, MSc Obesity May Prevent First-line MS Therapies from Working in Youngsters, Study Suggests Obesity may increase the risk for the development and progression of multiple sclerosis (MS) in children and teens, and it may prevent first-line MS therapies from working. Those findings were reported in the study āAssociation of Obesity With Multiple Sclerosis Risk and Response to First-line Disease…
June 7, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD Obesity, Altered Fat Levels May Worsen Severity of RRMS, Study Found Obesity, altered lipid (fat) levels, and elevated leptin ā an hormone produced by fat cells ā may contribute to neuroinflammation, and worse disease severity in people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), research has found. A study with the findings, titled “Obesity worsens central inflammation and disability in multiple…
February 11, 2019 Columns by Debi Wilson MS Boosts the Importance of Avoiding a Sedentary Lifestyle Multiple sclerosis (MS) can make our bodies experience pain, become weak, and easily fatigue. We can find it difficult just to walk. These challenges can steal our motivation to be active. But without regular activity, we become sedentary, which can increase weakness and fatigue symptoms that cause additional health…
December 17, 2018 News by Joana Carvalho, PhD Each Major Risk Factor (Like Genes, Smoking and Obesity) Can Affect Disease Course, Study Finds Risk factors often associated with multiple sclerosis (MS), such as genetic background, obesity and smoking, contribute independently to the disease’s variability and may be an early influence on progression, a study reported. The retrospective study, “Multiple sclerosis risk factors contribute to onset heterogeneity,” was published in the journalĀ …
October 15, 2018 News by Ana Pena PhD #ECTRIMS2018 – Excessive Weight, But Not Vitamin D, Linked with Faster Grey Matter Loss in MS, Study Finds Being overweight is associated with accelerated grey matter volume loss in the brain, a mark ofĀ neurodegeneration, in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, a five-year observational study shows. But vitamin D levels, often suggested as an MS risk factor, do not seem to affect brain volume over time.
October 12, 2018 News by BioNews Staff #ECTRIMS2018 – From Sun to Salt: Growing Role of Environment in MS A person’s genes influence the development of multiple sclerosis (MS), but so does the environment ā both that in which an MS patient lives, and that which a patient creates through diet and other lifestyle choices, researchers said in a Thursday session at the 34th congress of the European…
June 18, 2018 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: A Myelin Discovery; Comparing Gilenya and Tecfidera; Measuring a Fall Risk; Smoking, Obesity, and MS Discovery of āFieryā Cell Death Mechanism May Be MS āGame-Changerā Researchers at the University of Alberta have discovered a process that may be responsible for destroying myelin. Better than that, they also think they have a way of limiting that process using a medication. The inhibitor, known…
June 14, 2018 News by Vijaya Iyer, PhD Obesity and Smoking in Teen Years Could Speed Adult’s Progression to SPMS, Study Reports Young adults at age 20 who are obese and smoke are not only at a higher risk of developing relapsing multiple sclerosis ā those who become MS patients after age 20 are also more likely to advance to secondary progressive MS more quickly, researchers in Sweden report. But the link…
October 2, 2017 News by Ana Belo van Wijk, PhD MS Patients with Poor Diets, Little Exercise Report Higher Pain Levels in Study A clear association was seen between the substantial pain that multiple sclerosis (MS) patients experience and lifestyle choices that either augment or ease that pain, like smoking habits, exercise, and diet and weight, researchers in Australia report. Common co-morbidities associated with MS, such as depression, anxiety, and fatigue, were also…
May 18, 2017 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Obesity and Poor Vitamin D Levels Tied to Risk of Childhood MS in Study A study of nearly 600 children with multiple sclerosis reportedĀ that genes linked to low vitamin D levels and obesity contribute to the risk of developing MSĀ in childhood. While the two are also risk factors for adult-onset MS, obesity and low vitamin D have a larger risk impact on childrenĀ thanĀ adults. The…
February 8, 2017 News by admin Obesity and Early Start of Puberty Linked to Greater Likelihood of MS in Study of Teens Obesity in early adolescence poses a risk for multiple sclerosis (MS) regardless of sex, and an earlier age at puberty also contributes to MS onset at younger ages, especially inĀ overweight teenagers, a study reports. These findings were in the study, āDistinct…
July 1, 2016 News by InĆŖs Martins, PhD Childhood Obesity Linked to Higher Risk of Multiple Sclerosis, Possibly by Altering Vitamin D Levels Obese children and young adults appear toĀ be at a considerably higher risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), according to researchers at the McGill University in Canada and collaborators at the University of BristolĀ in the U.K., who found a causal relationship between the two. Their study, “…
April 13, 2016 News by admin Study Associates Obesity in Youth, Low Vitamin D Levels with MS Onset and Progression A systematic review of existing medical literature on multiple sclerosis (MS) could shed light on MS causes and predictors for diseaseĀ progression, and on lifestyle changes ā ranging from vitamin D intake to weight loss ā that might reduce a person’s risk. The report,Ā “Factors associated with onset, relapses…
December 10, 2015 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Potential MS Biomarker Seen in Adipose Tissue Secretion In a new study titled āAdipsin Is Associated with Multiple Sclerosis: A Follow-Up Study of Adipokines,ā researchers report a correlation between an adipokine called adipsin and the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis (MS). The study was published in the Multiple Sclerosis International journal. Obese adolescents…
November 5, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Autoimmune Disease, Obesity Link Found in Subset of Immune Dendritic Cells In a recent study published in the journal Immunity, researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel reportedĀ the findings that a small subtype of immune dendritic cells plays a role in the prevention of both metabolic syndrome and autoimmunity. The study is entitled ā…
November 11, 2014 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Obesity Linked To Multiple Sclerosis? A team of researchers at the Tel Aviv University report the role of obesity as a major risk factor triggering and maintaining autoimmune diseases, such as Crohn’s Disease and multiple sclerosis. The study was published in Autoimmunity Reviews. In autoimmune diseases, the immune system reacts against the body…