Our family has some great news to share! Jeff's new MRI shows a continued healing of his brain and spine. His cervical lesions are now "less prominent" than they were on his last MRI in 2012, an indication of remyelination. He has no new white matter lesions, and, most importantly, his gray matter structures are all healthy and normal, with no signs of atrophy. This MRI shows actual healing---not placebo---when compared to Jeff's very first MRI in 2007, which showed gray matter atrophy and enhancing lesions on the spine and brain.
It has been 8 1/2 years since Jeff's MS diagnosis, and 6 years since his venoplasty treatment at Stanford. Jeff remains physically and mentally active, and has stayed on the Endothelial Health Program. He has had no MS progression. We do not take Jeff's health for granted. We are very thankful for the wonderful CCSVI community and researchers, and we consider this blessing of good health something which we are responsible to share. We want to stay involved in the neurovascular community at large, because we remain convinced that it is essential to look at the brain's blood, cerebrospinal fluid and lymphatic flow when evaluating treatments.
MS is an inflammatory disease in which neurodegeneration and gray matter loss is the only correlate to disease progression. The autoimmune hypothesis remains unproven. All of the current drug treatments---now, a $20 billion a year industry--- are based on the EAE mouse model of MS, which relies on stopping immune activation in the central nervous system, and uses white matter lesions to measure "success" of a disease modifying med. None of these meds have been shown to stop MS disease progression.
New research on the brain continues to come in, and points to the brain's reliance on the major draining veins to maintain gray matter structures. MS specialists remain intransigent; by refusing to consider how slowed venous flow and endothelial dysfunction might be affecting their patients' brain health.
Yet the evidence continues. Outspoken advocates who have treated their own MS with cardiovascular means of diet, exercise and lifestyle changes continue to speak out and gain followers. These individuals are pointing the way to health and healing for the MS brain.
Dr. Terry Wahls http://terrywahls.com
Matt Embry http://www.mshope.com
Dr. George Jelinek http://www.overcomingmultiplesclerosis.org
Jeff Beal http://ccsvi.org/index.php/helping-myself/endothelial-health
Even though each program has specific dietary differences (paleo, anti-allergen, low fat)---it's important to notice the lifestyle measures which these programs SHARE.
1. Healthy, whole foods, with plenty of colorful organic fruits and vegetables
2. Removal of processed foods and transfats
3. Smoking cessation
4. Increased intake of Vitamin D with UV ray exposure and supplementation
5. Regular cardiovascular exercise
6. Meditation or some form of stress relief
7. Consideration of the blood, CSF and lymphatic flow to and from the brain
8. Good quality and regular sleep
9. Maintaining a healthy weight
10. Addressing microbiome health with probiotics
There are things that can be done today, to help the brain heal. Will these measures "cure" or "end" MS? None of us know that for sure. There may well be genetic factors which contribute to highly progressive MS, that cannot be completely addressed by these programs. But we now have years and years of evidence compiling---Matt Embry is out the furthest with 20 years of no disease activity, George Jelinek is at 16 years, and Terry Wahls and Jeff are at eight years.
These numbers are impressive, and they matter.
Please be encouraged (which literally means, to give heart!!!)
The heart and brain are connected, and it's possible to take care of them.
You can do it, one day at a time,
Joan and Jeff
