Trial reportJournal of the American College of Nutrition2021
A Modified MCT-Based Ketogenic Diet Increases Plasma β-Hydroxybutyrate but Has Less Effect on Fatigue and Quality of Life in People with Multiple Sclerosis Compared to a Modified Paleolithic Diet: A Waitlist-Controlled, Randomized Pilot Study.
Trial report in Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 40 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Efficacy of Diet on Quality of Life in Multiple Sclerosis
Evaluation of an Online Course Designed to Support the Adoption of Healthier Diet and Self-Care Routines in Multiple Sclerosis Patients
Who cites it
40 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 59 citations in OpenAlex.
- The effect of exogenous ketone bodies on cognition across health and disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Pooled it
- Efficacy of Diet on Fatigue and Quality of Life in Multiple Sclerosis: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-analysis of Randomized Trials.Neurology · 2023Pooled it
- The effects of intermittent fasting for patients with multiple sclerosis (MS): a systematic review.Frontiers in nutrition · 2023Pooled it
- Efficacy of diet on fatigue, quality of life and disability status in multiple sclerosis patients: rapid review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.BMC neurology · 2022Pooled it
- Effect of Ketogenic Diet on Quality of Life in Adults with Chronic Disease: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.Nutrients · 2021Pooled it
- The Efficacy of Ketogenic Therapies in the Clinical Management of People with Neurodegenerative Disease: A Systematic Review.Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.) · 2021Pooled it
- Phase II study of ketogenic diets in relapsing multiple sclerosis: safety, tolerability and potential clinical benefits.Journal of neurology, neurosurgery, and psychiatry · 2022Trial
- Trial
- Dietary regimens and cognitive function in multiple sclerosis: a systematic review.Brain, behavior, & immunity - health · 2026Review
- The Effect of an Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) Diet in Adults With Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Single Arm Crossover Pilot Feasibility Study.Musculoskeletal care · 2026Article
- Predicting Dietary Impact on Multiple Sclerosis-Related Symptoms With the Gut Microbiome: A Pilot Study Using Unsupervised Machine Learning.Brain and behavior · 2026Article
- Article
- The Effect of Exogenous Ketone Bodies on Cognition in Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment, Alzheimer's Disease and in Healthy Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2025Article
- Management and Prevention of Neurodegenerative Disorders: Can Antioxidant-Rich Dietary Interventions Help?Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Fasting, ketogenic, and anti-inflammatory diets in multiple sclerosis: a randomized controlled trial with 18-month follow-up.BMC nutrition · 2025Article
- Article
- Impact of the Ketogenic Diet on Neurological Diseases: A Review.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Article
- Nutritional interventional studies in patients with multiple sclerosis: a scoping review of the current clinical evidence.Journal of neurology · 2024Article
- Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveTo investigate the feasibility of a modified MCT-based ketogenic diet and its impact on plasma β-hydroxybutyrate and MS outcomes compared to a modified Paleolithic diet and usual diet in people with Multiple Sclerosis (MS).
methodsFifteen individuals with MS were randomized to 3 groups: 1) modified Paleolithic diet (Paleo;
resultsMacronutrient intake significantly shifted toward a ratio indicative of a ketogenic diet in the Keto group at 12 weeks. Similarly, plasma β-hydroxybutyrate indicated nutritional ketosis in the Keto group, whereas neither macronutrient intake nor plasma β-hydroxybutyrate indicated nutritional ketosis in the Paleo and Control groups. The Paleo group had significant within group reductions in fatigue scores and maintained cognitive function scores compared to the Control group. The Keto group had significant reductions in fasting glucose and insulin compared to baseline values; however, no clinical outcomes significantly changed.
conclusionsParticipants consuming the MCT-based ketogenic diet achieved nutritional ketosis; however, it was not associated with significant clinical improvement in this study whereas the modified Paleolithic diet was associated with significant clinical improvements. Larger randomized controlled trials are needed to determine the safety and efficacy of the modified Paleolithic and MCT-based ketogenic diets on MS.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.