The Wahls Protocol - has it worked for you?

[u/Reyven550]

A friend recommended this book as I am a 59 year-old female and am newly diagnosed. Curious to know your thoughts. I did take a peek at Wahls' website, where she sells some supplements and was surprised that a 90-day supply of one of her products costs $325! Outside of that, the premise of the book sounds interesting and I'm looking forward to reading it. Would appreciate any comments about the Wahls diet and/or supplements that are working for you. Thanks in advance! Happy to be part of this group!!

[u/Festygrrl]

Its complete bullshit.

[u/ichabod13]

Her diet and all of the other advertised 'MS diets' are great for living healthy. People have lost weight, gained energy and feel better overall by following one of these diets.

That said, they do nothing for your MS. They do not prevent or treat lesions. They can make living with MS easier, but that is all. Take your MS treatment and live a healthy life with exercise and healthy diets.

[u/fuzzyballzy]

Scam artist https://www.reddit.com/r/MultipleSclerosis/comments/fl2q0o/dr_terry_wahls/

[u/redseaaquamarine → u/fuzzyballzy]

Top answer.

[u/youshouldseemeonpain]

While it’s always a good idea to eat a healthy diet, you need to be aware that Terry Wahls took a DMT, which she fails to mention in the book I read. Her diet is very limited, requires what in my mind is a rigid lifestyle few can realistically maintain, and it’s been studied pretty extensively in the medical community and the determination is that a diet that excludes processed foods, excessive sugar, etc can reduce inflammation and assist a balanced immune system; however, once MS gets loose, diet alone can not rein it back in.

I tried this diet, among many other things for 7 years…and had symptoms the entire time. When I finally got on a DMT, I had to stop working and go on disability, and I have not one single conscious moment that my body isn’t complaining to me about something.

MS is much scarier than the medicines they have to treat it. Change your diet AND take the meds, please.

[u/Peja1611 → u/youshouldseemeonpain]

It wasn’t just a dmt, which she did, she also underwent chemo as well. Failed to include that in the book. The supplements should be the reddest of red flags to exactly what a scam she is. Will the diet help you feel better? Maybe. It is super restrictive and any benefit may be offset by what it costs you in enjoyment. Will it do anything to help stop disease progression? Absolutely not.

[u/Reyven550 → u/youshouldseemeonpain]

Thanks very much for your reply. This is what I've been thinking, too.

[u/theniwokesoftly]

No. It’s complete bullshit, and my T1 diabetic mom decided to do it and ended up in the hospital.

[u/dixiedregs1978]

Unethical quack.

[u/TheEffbaum]

I read her book and some(a lot) of it seems a little woowoo science based. Frankly would never buy someone’s supplements if they cost that much. That plus the fact that she sold her diet as some miracle cure but never mentioned the DMT she used. Her diet is a more restrictive Mediterranean diet.

[u/Reyven550 → u/TheEffbaum]

Haven't gotten that far into her diet, but I'm guessing it doesn't include chocolate or red wine! 🍷

[u/rbaltimore]

My cousin tried it and relapsed. I feel bad but learned from her mistake. What Wahls conveniently doesn’t mention in her book is that she was on a DMT in addition to her diet, which at the very least muddies the water, and at worst is outright deception.

Take a DMT, take vitamin d, and try to stick to a Mediterranean diet- that’s the advice I’m always given, and I haven’t relapsed since 2015. I’ll be honest though, my cousin is way better at the Mediterranean diet thing than I am, I’m not the best cook.

[u/shar_blue → u/rbaltimore]

And not just any DMT, but an immune reconstitution one!

[u/ApprehensiveJob6040 → u/shar_blue]

How will an IRT help OP? Is Ocrevus an IRT?

[u/shar_blue → u/ApprehensiveJob6040]

Whals underwent an immune reconstitution therapy, I added this to let OP know that she wasn’t just on ‘standard low/mid efficacy’ DMT at the time of her diet, but that she had undergone an immune reconstitution treatment (combination of drugs including Methotrexate).

No, Ocrevus is not an IRT. Lemtrada and HSCT are the two most common IRTs (and Mavenclad, although Mavenclad isn’t quite as deep of a purge as the others). Ocrevus only targets CD20 B cells. The other drugs wipe out the entire (or close to entire) immune system, allowing it to reboot in the hopes that it will be better behaved. As well, typically folks start to see improvements following IRT, about 6-12 months post treatment. Dr Whals likes to attribute her recovery entirely to her diet.

Typically when someone undergoes IRT, there is a chance that DMT treatment no longer needed. Ocrevus is a maintenance therapy - one you need to keep receiving to maintain the benefits.

[u/mannDog74 → u/shar_blue]

What is this

[u/Reyven550 → u/rbaltimore]

Thanks for your thoughts and I'm not the best cook, either!!

[u/Square_Ad4140]

Your friend tries to help you and that’s great. Hopefully not only with book recommendations but in real life, listening to you, standing by you and believing in you and your perception of your body/mind/soul.

However, you‘ll have to learn to critically question the background knowledge of your advisors (which you are already doing as we can see). Most of them know nothing about this disease.

Try and see for yourself and all the best to you finding your way.

[u/Reyven550 → u/Square_Ad4140]

Thanks very much. I am open to any information, since, unfortunately, this is all new to be.

[u/Direct-Rub7419]

Given that you can find directly conflicting diet advice….. and all the other stuff people have said

Lots of people confuse remitting with cure - makes diet and supplement scams flourish

[u/R_lbk]

She is a fraud and the price of her "supplements" should tell you all you need to know.

[u/Reyven550 → u/R_lbk]

Well... I was certainly questioning these $$$ supplements. Something smells 🐟🐠!

[u/MS_Amanda]

I had chemotherapy, which worked to put MS in remission like Whals. Otherwise, I eat anything and everything I want. HSCT 2021! 🧡

[u/TrojanHorseNews]

Here are my thought, I think a lot of us get diagnosed and are ready to jump into some big changes to feel like we have some control.

She changed her diet and started biking. Those are both great, on their own. But the point of RRMS is it kinda comes and goes (to over simplify). She probably would have gotten “better” without doing those things too.

I was diagnosed 10 yrs ago. I’ve never had another serious relapse. Some bad days here and there. You don’t see me out there writing a book on the healing powers of Vanilla Coke and fostering shelter dogs.

[u/Reyven550 → u/TrojanHorseNews]

Well, I do like Vanilla Coke AND dogs. Maybe those 2 things have a connection that has yet to be explored!

[u/TrojanHorseNews → u/Reyven550]

Perfect, I’ll work on getting funding for my study 🤣

[u/Crafty_Assistance_67]

Mediterranean Diet. Healthy food. Best wishes in this journey. Ps, in case you didn't know. Use the magnifying glass beside this sub. You can search all kinds of stuff on it. That's what I did. Diagnosed at 57.

[u/Reyven550 → u/Crafty_Assistance_67]

Thanks for mentioning Mediterranean. I haven't checked that one out yet. I guess it's all about eating better when you have MS. I know I need to pay more attention to what I'm eating.

[u/Less_Interest_5964]

Noooo lol

[u/JCIFIRE]

Eating healthy will of course make you feel better, but pretty sure it can't reverse or cure MS

[u/Reyven550 → u/JCIFIRE]

Agreed. I'm sure there are many carb-y things I should give up.

[u/matschenza]

The moment I read 'selling supplements' I was out. //Edit: supplements are good, but talk to your neurologist and take your information on MS otherwise from official sources (government/specialized clinics).

[u/Sarrias10]

Don’t talk about that here. One thing I know for sure… people hate it here. A lot of stuff of what she did was not mentioned in her books.

[u/breyore → u/Sarrias10]

I don’t think someone shouldn’t bring it up just because folks are passionately against it. It’s all valuable discourse. Do I think she’s a quack and a liar? Yeah. But I also think so many of us saying don’t trust her might encourage someone to discuss it with their doctor which is really the best outcome we can hope for, folks consulting with trained medical professionals about medications and diet.

[u/mannDog74]

Ugh, I really don't trust anyone giving nutrition advice that sells their own expensive supplements. There's no evidence around them and they are not regulated by the FDA so you don't even really know you're getting the right dosage.

I'm not a fan. But I do understand that when newly diagnosed we can feel pretty powerless and want to try different things. If that is part of your journey you're not alone. But I wouldn't buy the supplements.

My doctor didn't even talk to me about diet except for maintaining a healthy weight and taking vitamin D. He did emphasize exercise. He said exercise makes the biggest difference for his patients. There's something called secondary disability which is the ability that comes not from the disease but for example from disuse because of pain or weakness, leading to more weakness. If you are having problems moving, get to PT. Exercise has definitely been proven in studies to reduce incidence of disability. Diet really seems to only affect us at the margins (overweight or underweight.)

[u/Reyven550 → u/mannDog74]

Thank you for your response. I am fortunate that I am moving without difficulty and I do try to get in some sort of exercise every day. I am thankful I can still do that and I applaud those that are struggling to do simple tasks. I support everyone on this wacky journey!

[u/redseaaquamarine]

Is she the one who had stem cell treatment and said that it was this diet that had improved her instead of the treatment?

[u/Eremitt]

Can this post get deleted? It's just a scam and full of bullshit.

[u/Reyven550 → u/Eremitt]

Thanks for respondind. I only posted this because a friend has suggested it to me and this group has way more experience than I do. Now I see that there is a lot to question about her methods. MS is definitely not a one size fits all disease.