High carbohydrate-high calorie diets can delay the advance of motor neurone disease(MND), according to new research.

Scientists in the US gave three groups of MND patients different dietary regimes - one group of patients received a high carb diet, another a high fat diet and a third (control) group were given no specific diet, in order to maintain their current weight.

It was found that patients who were given the high carb/high calorie diet experienced fewer adverse events and significantly fewer serious adverse events from respiratory failure than the control group.

The researchers also found that patients undergoing the high carb/carbohydrate diet gained slightly more weight than the other groups of patients.

Dr Anne-Marie Wills, who led the study, said there is significant evidence that in motor neurone disease, survival is determined by nutrition levels.

She said possible side effects form the high carb/calorie diet, such as diabetes of heart disease, were not seen in the study.

The researchers said the study indicated that high calorie diets can help improve survival in motor neurone disease, also known as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). They also suggested that such diets may be of benefit in other brain conditions.

The research, carried out at Harvard Medical School/Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, is published in The Lancet.

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