Diet containing wheat may increase MS severity

London: A diet containing wheat can increase the severity of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a study.

Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease of the central nervous system. The immune system attacks healthy nerve cells in an overreaction, causing them to continuously die.

About 2.8 million people worldwide are affected by MS. The prevalence is increasing significantly, especially among young adults and women.

In two studies, published in the journals Gut and Therapeutic Advances in Neurological Disorders, the researchers found that a natural protein in wheat called amylase trypsin inhibitors (ATI), influences the inflammatory reaction that can result in temporary sensory disturbances, visual disturbances and muscle paralysis.

ATI are natural proteins found in cereals such as wheat, barley and rye. The ATI proteins are hardly digested and cause mild inflammatory reactions in the intestine.

However, they do not only act in the intestine: Inflammatory cells and soluble inflammatory mediators activated by ATI can also be transported from the intestine to other parts of the body through the bloodstream, revealed the team at the University Medical Center Mainz in Germany.

The team discovered that the ATI proteins promote existing inflammatory processes in organs such as the liver or lungs and, what's new, even in the central nervous system. As a result, the ATI proteins can exacerbate the symptoms of MS.

"Until now, however, there was no clear evidence that a wheat-containing diet can also influence inflammatory diseases of the central nervous system. We have now been able to show, both in an animal model and in a clinical pilot study, that the ATI proteins in wheat can enhance the severity of MS.