Natural Remedy Dos and Don’ts for Multiple Sclerosis

More and more people with multiple sclerosis (MS) are looking into so-called natural remedies — mostly herbs, vitamins, and supplements — as alternatives, or complements, to prescription drug treatment.

But caution is necessary, because even some supplements that appear to be helpful have actually been shown to be harmful when tested in clinical trials.

“与您的医生交谈无疑是尝试任何补品之前的第一步。”艾伦·M·莫里（Ellen M. Mowry），医学博士，巴尔的摩的约翰·霍普金斯医学神经病学副教授，也对待专家有MS的人。

“I think sometimes people get frustrated that doctors aren't more ‘positive’ about supplements, but as a neurologist, I expect to see the same high-quality data for a supplement as I would expect for any medication I prescribe before recommending it,” Dr. Mowry says.

So which supplements are worth exploring, and which should you avoid? Here are some natural remedy dos and don’ts for people with MS.

Do Discuss Vitamin D With Your Doctor

研究建议低血液的水平维生素D可能会增加发展MS的风险。此外，研究将低水平的维生素D与已诊断为MS的人的残疾增加联系起来。

But could taking维生素D补充剂帮助减少MS symptoms?马里兰州Vijayshree Yadav, associate professor of neurology and MS researcher at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, describes vitamin D as “much more important than any other supplement” in people with MS. She and her colleagues regularly assess vitamin D levels in the blood of their MS patients and recommend the use of a supplement if levels are not “at the high range of normal.”

尽管维生素D通常是安全的，但Yadav博士补充说，这可能是一个问题，导致维生素Dtoxicity和严重的副作用。最好在可以监测您的血液水平的医学专家的监督下服用任何维生素D补充剂。

请考虑Ginkgo biloba ms疲劳

银杏叶是一个额外的ct produced from the leaves of the ginkgo tree. It’s typically taken to improve brain function and memory, although clinical trials of ginkgo have not consistently shown these benefits.

迄今为止，科学证据支持其治疗的有效性记忆丧失与MS相关的是有限的，多次研究产生了不同的结果。guidelines published in March 2014 in the journalNeurology由美国神经病学会（AAN）。

“目前，根据当前的证据，我们不建议银杏在MS患者中的认知功能，”该准则的主要作者Yadav说。

On the plus side, a study in which people with MS were given 240 milligrams (mg) per day of the herb for a four-week period showed that ginkgo did provide significant reduction in疲劳症状与安慰剂的作用相比。

不要带人参与MS相关的疲劳

Ginseng, an herb that's been used in China for medicinal purposes for more than 2,000 years, has been found in some clinical studies to reduce fatigue, although how it works remains unknown.

But as noted in astudy published in December 2011 in多发性硬化症杂志, giving American ginseng extract to people with MS in increasing daily doses of 100 mg, 200 mg, and 400 mg for the first three weeks of a six-week period failed to show any benefit. Worse, some of the study participants experienced失眠，尤其是在更高剂量的情况下。

Yadav补充说，尽管较小剂量的人参提取物（每天少于2克（G））似乎是安全的，但每天超过3 g的剂量与副作用有关，例如高血压，失眠症，皮疹和腹泻。

喝绿茶

一种study published in May 2014 in the journal多发性硬化症国际发现deficienciesof certain antioxidants in the blood of people with MS may contribute to worsening symptoms.绿茶富含抗氧化剂以及epigallocatechin-3-gallate（EGCG），该化合物可能会增强免疫系统和脑细胞。尽管对MS患者的绿茶的好处的研究尚未产生结论性的结果，但少量的安全性是完全安全的，可能会帮助您感觉更好。

绿茶supplements, on the other hand, are not without risk. Astudy published in November 2015 in the神经科学杂志发现high amounts of polyphenon E, or green tea extract, can lead to severe liver problems.

请考虑服用辅酶Q10

辅酶Q10是一种天然在体内生产的抗氧化剂，用于帮助您将食物转化为能量。一种研究于2016年3月发表在《期刊》上营养神经科学发现与不使用它的人相比，每天一次含有500毫克辅酶Q10的补充剂Q10降低了MS患者的疲劳和抑郁症状。

But Yadav says these findings need to be repeated in larger studies before clinicians can draw specific conclusions.

Do Take Lipoic Acid Supplements

lipoic酸is an antioxidant available in both oral and IV forms. In a评论于2010年6月发表在《期刊》上临床免疫学专家评论, Yadav noted that lipoic acid had been prescribed successfully in Germany for the treatment ofdiabetic neuropathy。另外，发现很小study published in September 2016 in the online library of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosisshowed that people with MS taking 1,200 mg per day of a lipoic acid supplement had 66 percent less brain atrophy compared with participants taking a placebo, and had a significant preservation of brain volume over a two-year period.

“Hopefully larger trials will confirm these findings,” Yadav says. For now, she adds that lipoic acid is a “safe supplement to take based on limited evidence we have.”