Why MS patients should avoid dairy products Health City Berlin

Controversial debate has been going on for years over the health value of milk. Some still see dairy products as a healthy source of calcium. Others claim that milk gets sick Could you. This faction includes Dr. Bodo Melnik from the University of Osnabrück. The doctor says that the growth factors in cow’s milk can lead to cancer.

I found a causal relationship

Therefore, what MS researchers from the Universities of Bonn and Erlangen-Nuremberg have discovered is now very interesting. The starting point of their study was that people with multiple sclerosis (MS) often complain of stronger symptoms after eating dairy products. The research team wanted to know: Is there a causal relationship? And if so, what substance in milk causes the symptoms of the disease?

Neurological disorders observed in mice

To find out the answer, they injected mice with different proteins from cow’s milk. In fact, it turned out that if the animals were given casein made from cow’s milk with an active enhancer, the mice then developed nervous disorders. “Under an electron microscope, it was found that the insulating layer around the nerve fibers, myelin, had been damaged,” explains MS researcher Stephanie Courten of the University Hospital Bonn.

Casein antibodies destroy the myelin sheath

This is exactly myelin sheath It is also destroyed by the body’s immune system in MS. The nerve stimuli cannot then be transmitted properly, which can lead to discomfort, vision problems, and movement disturbances. In rats, too, the insular cortex was significantly perforated – apparently due to ingestion of casein. “We suspected that the cause was a misguided immune reaction, similar to what occurs in patients with multiple sclerosis,” explains Rittika Chunder. “The body’s own defense actually attacks casein, but it also destroys proteins that are involved in the formation of myelin.”

killer interactive

Further investigation revealed that a protein called MAG was also targeted by the immune system. This protein is important for the production of myelin and appears very similar to the casein found in cow’s milk in some ways. So it appears that the immune system is confusing the two molecules.

According to the researchers, the so-called cross-reactivity explains why many MS patients react violently to dairy products. The immune system therefore produces large numbers of casein antibodies, which also damage the myelin layer around nerve fibers due to cross-reaction with MAG. However, this only affects MS patients who are allergic to cow’s milk casein. “We are currently developing a self-test that people can use to check if they have the appropriate antibodies,” explains group leader Courten. “At least this subgroup should abstain from milk, yoghurt or quark.”

When he drinks a lot of cow’s milk, there is more MS

The MS researcher also believes that it is possible that cow’s milk may also increase the risk of MS in healthy people. Because casein can also lead to allergic reactions – in theory, there could also be a cross-reaction with myelin. Although these findings are not yet confirmed, the researcher points to studies that indicate more cases of multiple sclerosis are occurring in populations in which a lot of cow’s milk is consumed.