Webinar highlights: NEU updates with Associate Professor Sandra Neate | S5E17

Welcome to Living Well with MS. In this episode we are delighted to welcome Associate Professor Sandra Neate as our guest! Sandra is from the Neuroepidemiology Unit (NEU) at the University of Melbourne where she researches lifestyle modification and diet quality for people with MS.

This webinar was recorded in September 2022 as part of our 'Finding Hope with Overcoming MS - 10th-anniversary edition' webinar series. You can watch the whole webinar here or the podcast highlights on YouTube here.

Keep reading for the key episode takeaways and bio. 

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Selected Key Takeaways:

Evidence shows there are benefits to regular meditation

(28:57) “The most compelling result was that meditation resulted in reduced depression, and increased feelings of mastery. It's about the feeling that one's life is under one's own control and not controlled by external forces, feelings of empowerment, that sort of thing. The interesting finding was that those who were meditating even as little as once weekly for 20 minutes were still experiencing a benefit.”

Sticking to the Overcoming MS diet can lead to improved health outcomes

(21:34) “We've conducted two studies that have looked at sticking with an MS-specific diet. Now some of these are named MS diets, like the Swank diet, the Overcoming MS diet, the Wahls style, etc. One of our studies looked at whether following an MS-specific diet led to improved health outcomes. It found that persistent adherence to the Overcoming MS diet led to lower fatigue, disability and depression than both non-adherence and ceased adherence to the diet. So, your ability to stick with the diet is a very important thing.”

The Neuroepidemiology Unit wants to provide the tools for people with MS to take control of their health

(45:15) “We're trying to build a picture of what lifestyle modification can do in MS. By doing that we hope to help people with MS find confidence and empowerment through the knowledge they've gained. We hope to provide people with MS with the tools to self-manage because the principles are fairly simple. The practicalities may not be so simple, but the tools are there. We hope that people will live with hope, based on the evidence that we've provided.”

Related Links:  Watch the original webinar here Read the Overcoming MS Handbook: Roadmap to Good Health Listen to previous episodes with Sandra  Season 3E36 NEU - What's on the research horizon Season 4E47 Hello 2022, Hello OMS Handbook Find out more about the NEU here New to Overcoming MS? visit our introductory page  Visit our website  Follow us on social media: Facebook  Instagram Twitter YouTube Pinterest  Don’t miss out: 

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Associate Professor Sandra Neate’s bio:

Sandra’s career
Associate Professor Sandra Neate is a clinician researcher who is the head of the Neuroepidemiology Unit (NEU) within the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health at the University of Melbourne in Australia. 

NEU research
The NEU researches lifestyle-related risk factors in MS and health outcomes and the experiences of people who adopt lifestyle modification. The NEU is also developing and researching novel ways to deliver evidence-based information about lifestyle modification to people with MS, including online modalities. Sandra's personal research interest is in talking with people with MS and their families regarding the experiences of lifestyle modification.