<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

Thank you to all who responded to my question about any relationship
between MS and Celiac.  I received about 20 e-mails,  and soon realized
that I'm not alone in my symptoms.  About two months ago I started to
have vertigo, tingling, and numbness in my legs.  I've been trying to
sort out what else it might be,  and what I could do to alleviate my
symptoms. I've had all the test for MS, and so far everything is
negative.   Many others were like me and had symptoms indicative of MS,
but no definitive diagnosis.

Before I summarize, I should say that I had the opportunity to attend an
MS conference today where a well know neurologist,  who specializes in
MS, talked to us for 4 hours.  I told him that I had multiple autoimmune
disorders and ask him if MS tends to be more prevalent in those who had
other autoimmune diseases.  He said that MS did not tend to cluster with
other autoimmune diseases.  I ask him if persons with Celiac tended to
present with more MS.  He said that he didn't believe so, although some
of his patients did report that a GF diet was helpful for them.  He did
say that some of the symptoms of Crones(SP) diseases can mimic MS.  One
thing important that he kept repeating was that MS needs to be diagnosed
and treated as quickly as possible.  Patients treated early do much
better in the long run. They experience fewer flares and less
disability.  He recommended that all new patients being evaluated for MS
undergo an MRI of both the brain and spinal cord. This was news to me, I
always though a MRI of the head would suffice.  He said that lesions,
especially those affecting motor control, can occur in the spinal cord.
After listening to this doctor, I would encourage anyone who even thinks
they might have MS to be evaluated by a neurologist.


Here is a summary of the post I received:


Many of the post that I have not quoted suggested  a very low fat diet
free of gluten, legumes and dairy products to treat MS.

> I have read several places that the serum B12 test is not
> as useful as a methylmalonic acid test.

Post from a family doctor on the list:

> I have seen many articles describing this type of problem which can mimic
> MS--I am aware of no causal relationship between the two but many the
> conditions mentioned above can look a lot like MS.  A negative brain MRI
> weighs well against MS.
>
> GF diet may help with CD related neuro stuff but our understanding is early.
>
>
> I have been gluten free for  13 years, have had the tingling and then
> the neuropathy in my legs (started in my feet and moved up to below
> knees) for the last 6 or 7 years.
>
>     My doctor never felt is was MS; however, I was recently diagnosed
> with Parkinson's by a different doctor.
>
> How is your potassium level, I had these symptoms until I got my
> potassium and multi vitamins to the right level
>
> I've had all those symptoms.  I not only went gluten-free, but also went off
> everything I could be allergic to, which included many foods.  Adding them
> back 1 at a time showed many foods were allergenic for me.  All my symptoms
> went away by "simply" staying away from them