Episode 450: Exercise is Medicine for People with MS with Dr. Robert Motl

An exercise program can be hard to start and even more difficult to stick with. But the evidence-based benefits speak for themselves. For people living with MS, it can mean improving quality of life without having to rely on a pill, injection, or infusion. And exercise is 100% affordable!

Dr. Robert Motl, the Director of the Exercise Neuroscience Research Laboratory at the College of Applied Health Sciences at the University of Illinois Chicago, joins me to discuss how exercise can improve MS-related brain fog, reduce fatigue, and perhaps even support myelin repair.

We'll also share the results of a study that shows having mononucleosis is a significant risk factor for developing MS.

And we'll tell you about a powerful imaging agent that can identify which immune cells are causing the inflammatory activity that drives MS, determine disease severity, and track the immune system's response to disease-modifying therapy. It's a potential game-changer in MS care.

We have a lot to talk about! Are you ready for RealTalk MS??!

This Week: Evidence-based benefits of exercise for people living with MS :22

Study results show that having mono increases the chance that someone will develop MS 1:28

Researchers have created an imaging agent with the potential to be a game-changer in diagnosing and treating MS 4:29

Dr. Robert Motl explains how and why exercise can be medicine for people with MS 10:04

Share this episode 31:50

Next week 32:10

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LINKS

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STUDY: Risk of Multiple Sclerosis Among Persons with Epstein-Barr Virus-Positive Mononucleosis
https://www.neurology.org/doi/10.1212/WN9.0000000000000082

STUDY: A Radiolabeled Dendrimer Non-Invasively Identifies and Tracks Innate Immune Cell Activation in a Mouse Model of Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-67907-x

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RealTalk MS Episode 450
Guest: Dr. Robert Motl

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