Introduction

This information is for people who have multiple sclerosis. It tells you about exercise, a treatment used to help tiredness in multiple sclerosis. It is based on the best and most up-to-date research.

Does it work?

We're not sure. Regular exercise may improve your strength and fitness. But there isn't enough good research to know if exercise can help you feel less tired from your multiple sclerosis (MS). However, many doctors in the UK feel that regular exercise is helpful.^[2]

What is it?

An exercise programme has a range of activities to improve your fitness and reduce your fatigue. Here's what a typical session might look like:

• A warm-up period to loosen up your muscles

• About 20 minutes to 30 minutes of aerobic exercise (that's the kind that gets your heart beating faster)

• A cool-down period to let your body get back to normal

• About 5 minutes to 10 minutes of stretching.

You might do this kind of exercise three times a week. But your programme should suit your physical abilities. The aerobic part might include walking, running, or using a machine such as an exercise bicycle.

How can it help?

There's good evidence that taking regular exercise can help you keep strong, fit, and able to move around.^[89] Your mood may also improve. But more research is needed to find out if exercise can also help you feel less tired.

A small study found that exercise meant people could walk further, but didn't help them become less disabled overall, and didn't affect how tired they felt.^[90]

How does it work?

Regular exercise may help you feel fitter and stronger.^[89] It may also have other health benefits. For example, it may reduce your body fat and your cholesterol level, and it may improve your mood.

Can it be harmful?

The research didn't find any side effects from exercise.^[89] However, symptoms of MS tend to be worse when your body temperature gets higher, and exercise can heat your body up. Some doctors worry that exercising could worsen your symptoms and even trigger a relapse.^[91] So you shouldn't overdo it. But mild to moderate exercise doesn't seem to be harmful.

You may find it hard to stick to an aerobic exercise programme if you are very tired.

How good is the research on exercise?

We found one summary of the research (a systematic review) including 260 people with multiple sclerosis.^[92] There was strong evidence that exercise can help you keep:

• Strong

• Fit

• Able to move around.

There was also some evidence that exercising may improve your mood. But the people who followed an exercise programme didn't feel less tired. However, some of the studies weren't good-quality. So we don't really know if exercise helps tiredness.

A small study looked at 40 people with MS. It found that exercise meant people could walk further. However, it didn't help them become less disabled overall, and it didn't affect how tired they felt.^[90]

Glossary

systematic reviews

A systematic review is a thorough look through published research on a particular topic. Only studies that have been carried out to a high standard are included. A systematic review may or may not include a meta-analysis, which is when the results from individual studies are put together.

For more terms related to Multiple sclerosis

Citations