This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Community: Knowledge & Support

Found this interesting tidbit on a site which in general, I really agree with on so many levels. Some interesting thoughts, although not well-cited as are many other sections of that site...

coincidence or not, but I had the elisa/rast food allergy testing done in sept.07 and to my surprise as well as my md, I tested very positive to gluten and eggs. I have been on a gluten/egg free diet for 1 year. If there is any chance that diet is the culprit, then I will try to fix it.

My allergy has never caused me an anaphylactic type reaction, but who is to say that it hasn't, over the years, caused me a leaky gut/cause of MS...since they say that something has caused a breech in the blood brain barrier.

I have read that it can take several years to rid the body of food allergen/antibodies.

Extra benefit of gluten free: I've lost 40-50 pounds.

I found out that I was actually a coeliac (gluten intolerant) 5 years ago. My MS has greatly improved since sticking to the gf diet, but it has not gone totally. I also gave up smoking and changed meds to Copoaxone around that time so it's hard to tell what is working well.

I would beg anyone with MS with any bowel symptoms (including constipation) to just get a blood test for anti-gliaden antibodies. You have to actually have been eating a normal diet prior to the test for a few weeks otherwise you could get a false negative result. I wasn't underweight when I was diagnosed as a coeliac, although a lot of family doctors still think that's what a coeliac should look like. I have a feeling that gluten intolerance is far more commen than people think but it's not a diet I'd embark on without a medical reason like the anti-gliaden antibodies + result/biopsy.