Removing dairy from the diet is often one of the first steps we take when seeking to improve our MS health outcomes due to its potential risk… but why is that?
Butyrophilin research
Researchers investigated the concept of molecular mimicry in a 2000 study on butyrophilin, a common protein found in cow’s milk. Molecular mimicry occurs when the immune system, while defending against harmful pathogens, mistakenly targets the body’s own proteins because they resemble the foreign protein chains found in food. When administered to rats, the researchers found that butyrophilin triggered inflammation in the central nervous system (CNS) and the same demyelinating response of MS.
It is hypothesised that exposure to butyrophilin in milk could potentially affect the development and progression of MS, as our immune system may confuse butyrophilin with our own myelin sheath proteins, thus causing inflammation. Myelin, a fatty substance insulating nerve fibres in the brain and spinal cord, plays a crucial role in MS as the immune system mistakenly attacks and damages the myelin sheath, disrupting nerve signals leading to various neurological symptoms.
IgG research
In this 2023 study, ‘The prevalence of IgG antibodies against milk and milk antigens in patients with multiple sclerosis’, researchers analysed 35 MS patients and 20 healthy individuals, assessing their immune reactions (IgG responses) to various animal and plant-based milk alternatives as well as specific antigens within cow’s milk.
The findings revealed significantly heightened IgG responses among MS patients, particularly to cow’s milk, compared to the healthy group. These responses stemmed from reactions against different cow’s milk antigens. Correlations were noted between antibodies targeting certain cow’s milk antigens and their structurally similar Central Nervous System (CNS) proteins, an immune reaction which is of particular interest to people with MS. It is speculated that the overall reactivity to bovine milk that was observed is, at least partially, due to an elevated IgG response to the A1 β-casein protein.
HOLISM (Health Outcomes and Lifestyle in a Sample of people with MS) study
A 2023 study looking at diet quality found that eating a high-quality diet was associated with a significant reduction in the risk of future disability progression. Participants with the highest scores for diet quality experienced more than a 50% reduced risk over the 7.5-year study period. Consistently reported dairy consumption between baseline to 5 years was associated with a greater risk of increased disability, independent of overall quality of diet. Researchers concluded that dairy may potentially increase disability progression risk.
Milk consumption
A 1992 epidemiological study found a highly significant correlation between liquid milk consumption and MS prevalence. No significant correlation between cheese consumption and MS was found, however. Interestingly, in a follow up study, significant correlations were also found between cow milk production per inhabitant and MS prevalence. Epidemiological studies are limited by the fact that cause and effect conclusions cannot be drawn, however they provide hypotheses to be tested in further research.
Contrasting evidence
In contrast, a 2-year study published in 2023 involving 186 participants with MS found no association between dairy and gluten intake, and disease activity or quality of life scores. A strength of the study was that rather than relying on self-reported MS symptoms, it used three parameters to measure disease activity: no disability progression (as assessed by the Expanded Disability Status Scale), absence of clinical relapses, and no new MRI lesions. The researchers acknowledged that overall evidence in this field continues to be contradictory and that larger interventional studies are warranted to further explore the role of dietary interventions in MS.
Working together
Autoimmune diseases are complex and multifactorial but removing dairy from the diet could help reduce the potential risk of this harmful molecular mimicry. As much as I miss cheese, my dairy-free swaps have made it so much easier to keep progressing on my own MS health journey. Download my ebook for my delicious dairy-free swap recipes and let me know which ones you like best!
If you would like support on your MS health journey, take a look at the range of nutritional therapy programmes which I offer. Please contact me for a free discovery call for more information. I look forward to working with you soon.