Researchers at the University of Bonn have found a link between the consumption of dairy products and more severe multiple sclerosis (MS) symptoms in MS patients.
Multiple sclerosis sufferers often complain of more severe disease symptoms after consuming dairy products. Researchers have now found a possible cause for this and reported it in a paper published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
According to the study, a protein in cow's milk can trigger inflammation that targets the 'insulating layer' around nerve cells. The study was able to demonstrate this link in mice, but also found evidence of a similar mechanism in humans. The researchers therefore recommend that certain groups of sufferers avoid dairy products.
During the study, lead author Stefanie Kürten from the Institute of Anatomy at University Hospital Bonn, injected mice with different proteins from cow's milk, to find out if there was a constituent that they were responding to with symptoms of disease. And the researchers did indeed find what they were looking for: When they administered the cow's milk constituent casein to the animals, the mice went on to develop neurological disorders. Electron microscopy showed damage to the insulating layer around the nerve fibers, the myelin.
In multiple sclerosis, the body's immune system destroys the myelin sheath. The consequences range from paresthesia and vision problems to movement disorders. In extreme cases, patients need a wheelchair. The insulating sheath was also massively perforated in the mice -- apparently triggered by casein administration.
“Casein is a key protein in cow’s milk, so I don’t know how easy its elimination can be to make an alternative suitable for those patients. However, we are currently studying whether a specific type of casein is the culprit behind the aggravated symptoms. In this case, we can only eliminate this type to address the problem,” Kürten told Asharq Al-Awsat.
“But, for now, we recommend MS patients to consume non-dairy substitutes like soy milk, oat milk, and almond milk,” she added.
