What role could lifestyle play in preventing Multiple Sclerosis (MS)?

The question formed the basis of a lively debate, with one of the three panellists – a neurologist – making the case for lifestyle to play a greater role in approaches to MS prevention. This was particularly encouraging, as we need more neurologists to champion the role that lifestyle may play not only in preventing MS, but also in its management and ongoing care. While there is currently no proven way to prevent MS, growing evidence suggests that lifestyle factors may influence a person’s risk of developing the condition, as well as health outcomes after diagnosis. As our understanding of MS continues to evolve, researchers are increasingly exploring whether lifestyle could become part of future prevention strategies and earlier intervention. 

Lifestyle is attracting growing research interest because it focuses on factors that may be modifiable. Things that Overcoming MS have long championed, such as being physically active, eating a high-quality diet, managing stress, and supplementing with Vitamin D, have all been associated with MS risk or disease outcomes to varying degrees. Researchers are increasingly working to better understand the strength of this evidence, how lifestyle interacts with genetics and environmental factors, and whether changes made earlier in life could help reduce risk or improve long-term health. 

The debate highlighted the different perspectives within the research community. While one panellist argued that lifestyle deserves a more prominent place in MS prevention, others emphasised vaccination against the Epstein-Barr virus or early immunotherapy as the most promising ways to prevent MS. Whichever approach proves most effective, it’s encouraging to see researchers exploring multiple routes to MS prevention. 

It was also fantastic to see lifestyle research featured throughout the wider conference programme. Alongside the debate, many presentations and scientific posters explored topics such as exercise, nutrition, behaviour change and other modifiable factors that may influence health and wellbeing for people affected by MS. Seeing lifestyle represented across so many sessions highlighted the growing recognition that it has an important place in MS research alongside advances in drug treatments and disease biology. 

We were also delighted to contribute to the conference. Our Head of Information and Research attended MS Frontiers 2026 to present our poster, which detailed some of the findings from our 2025 Community Survey. Conferences like MS Frontiers provide valuable opportunities to exchange ideas, discuss emerging evidence and build collaborations that can help shape future research. 

MS Frontiers continues to showcase the latest developments in MS research, from advances in understanding the biology of the disease to new approaches for treatment, prevention and support. It was inspiring to be part of these conversations and to see lifestyle increasingly recognised as an important area of scientific enquiry. We’ll be following this research closely and continuing to share the latest evidence with our community. 

Interested in contributing to MS research?

Visit our Research studies page to explore current opportunities to take part in research. You can also read the full conference poster on our Publications page to learn more about the findings.