Plasticity in Your Brain is a Good Thing!

Practical tips to preserve brain health and combat neuroinflammation in MS

By: Samantha Whitney, Research Assistant, Center for Traumatic Brain Injury Research

Illustrations Courtesy of: Lexi French, Medical Illustrator

You might be surprised to find out that plasticity in your brain is a good thing—but we’re not talking about microplastics! Multiple sclerosis is a condition where the immune system mistakenly attacks the brain and spinal cord, causing inflammation, nerve damage, and reduced neuroplasticity. As a result, the brain’s ability to form new cellular connections is diminished and the brain is less able to compensate for damage done to its neurons. Over time, this chronic neuroinflammation contributes to nerve loss and reduced brain plasticity which leads to muscle weakness, vision problems, and cognitive decline. 

Neuroplasticity is especially reduced in patients with MS. However, there are things you can do to keep your brain healthy, even while its being attacked by your immune system. Exercise can temporarily boost neuroplasticity in people with MS by improving brain-muscle communication and reducing excessive brain inhibition. Regular physical activity has shown even greater benefits, demonstrating a 20% increase in the volume of the hippocampus, an area of the brain related to memory and learning and particularly impacted by neuroinflammation and MS. This increase in hippocampal volume leads to better memory, movement, overall function, and reduced fatigue. In contrast, while treatments like medication and brain stimulation can help, they tend to provide short-term benefits. 

Here are a few things you can do to improve brain heath and reduce neuroinflammation:

• Exercise to enhance neuroplasticity and cognitive function. Strength training and walking can both help to reduce inflammation and strengthen connections between the brain and muscles.
• Eat a well-balanced diet. Neurofriendly diets should include nutrients common in the Mediterranean diet. It is especially important to consume antioxidant rich fruit and omega-3 fatty acids that can be found in things like salmon, mackerel, and avocado, and vitamin D rich food like beef liver and milk. These foods protect your myelin sheath, which is damaged by inflammation characteristic of MS.
• Get good quality sleep, which is essential for memory consolidation, neuroplasticity, and reducing inflammation.
• Commit to physical therapy which encourages the brain to rewire the networks that are miscommunicating and causing muscle dysfunction