assessing the relationship between dietary phytochemical index and fatigue severity in multiple sclerosis patients

Background: phytochemical-rich foods have anti-inflammatory effects and play a role in the prevention and control of inflammatory diseases such as multiple sclerosis (ms). although some aspects of a diet high in phytochemicals promoting health and preventing chronic diseases are known, further studies are required to confirm the previous findings. methods: this cross-sectional study investigated the relationship between dietary phytochemical index (dpi) and fatigue severity in patients with ms. a total of 240 patients aged 18 to 65 years were selected from the ms association center of golestan province. a valid and reliable food frequency questionnaire was used to evaluate the diet, and fatigue severity was assessed using the fatigue severity scale (fss) questionnaire. dpi was calculated using the formula [daily energy from foods rich in phytochemicals (kcal) divided by total daily energy intake (kcal)] and was calculated as 100. results: after controlling for potential confounding factors, the highest tertile of dpi had a lower prevalence of fatigue symptoms (odds ratio (or: 0.27; 95%ci: 0.03-0.36; p=0.012) compared to those in the lowest tertile. the average age of the study participants was 31.9±7.7 years, and the fatigue score scale among the participants was 39.31±11.62. conclusion: in conclusion, a significant inverse relationship between dpi and fatigue severity was observed in patients with ms. further prospective studies are needed to confirm these findings.