The First Clinical Trial Using a Paleo Diet for Autoimmune Disease

February 20, 2014 in Categories: FAQ, Resources, The Autoimmune Protocol, The Paleo Approach by ThePaleoMom



The first paper from Dr. Terry Wahl’s clinical trials, titled “A Multimodal Intervention for Patients with Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis: Feasibility and Effect on Fatigue“, has been e-published ahead of print in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. And this is exciting news!



The recommendations in The Paleo Approach are compiled from insights gleaned from over 1200 scientific studies. Each of these studies provided guidance for one tiny piece of the puzzle. For example, one study would show that vitamin D deficiency is correlated with autoimmune disease. Another study would show that fish oil supplementation reduces symptoms of autoimmune disease. Yet another study shows that wheat germ agglutinin stimulates the immune system. I took all these tiny pieces and wove together a set of recommendations aimed at regulating the immune system, regulating hormone systems, restoring gut barrier function, and nurturing a healthy ecosystem for our gut bacteria to thrive in. I know from personal experience and from thousands of others that this works. I can point to scientific papers that explain why (at least for each individual tiny piece). But all this is still anecdotal. What has been missing is the clinical trials to prove the effectiveness of a nutrient-dense Paleo diet to reduce autoimmune disease symptoms. Until now.



The first paper from Dr. Terry Wahls’ clinical trials is about to be published (unfortunately, the article is only available as an e-publication ahead of print to subscribers of the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine; the rest of us have to pay to read it). Not familiar with Dr. Wahls? Dr. Wahls is both an inspiring testament of the power of nutrition herself and is contributing to the scientific literature on the role of diet in disease by running the first clinical trials evaluating the effectiveness of a nutrient-dense paleo diet for the management of autoimmune disease, in his case secondary-progressive multiple sclerosis. She is also the author of a fantastic new book, The Wahls Protocol, which I highly recommend.



Dr. Wahls’ clinical trials are directly inspired by her own personal battle with secondary-progressive multiple sclerosis (I recommend watching the viral YouTube video of her TedX-IowaCity talk from fall 2011). She found something that worked, that reduced her symptoms and seemingly reversed her disease . And now she is testing whether or not this approach can work for other people suffering from MS through methodical clinical trials. And the early results show that it can.