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==Professional positions==
==Professional positions==


In 2000 Wahls moved to [[Iowa City, Iowa]], to become the associate chief of staff for ambulatory care at the Veterans Administration (VA) Iowa City Medical Center and associate professor of medicine in the college of medicine at the University of Iowa. In that same year, Wahls was diagnosed with [[relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis]] (MS)<ref>"UI Researchers Develop Innovative Protocol of Treatment for MS Patients". N.p., 14 Nov. 2011. Web. 25 Mar. 2013. https://www.ccsvi.nl/prikbord/Direct.aspx?guid=tag:ccsvi-ms.ning.com,2011-11-17:5297960:BlogPost:186423</ref> that progressed to a stage where she was using a wheelchair and on the verge of being unable to continue practicing medicine.
In 2000 Wahls moved to [[Iowa City, Iowa]], to become the associate chief of staff for ambulatory care at the Veterans Affairs(VA) Iowa City Medical Center and associate professor of medicine in the Carver College of Medicine at the University of Iowa. In that same year, Wahls was diagnosed with [[relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis]] (MS) In 2004, Wahls was assigned to be part of the Institutional Review Board (IRB). In that role, Wahls reviewed clinical studies for the University of Iowa and the Iowa City Veteran Affairs Medical Center. (VAMC). In 2008, Wahls joined the multi-disciplinary team that served veterans with a history of traumatic brain injury in the Polytrauma Clinic at the Iowa City VAMC.  In 2008, Wahls was promoted to clinical professor of medicine at the University of Iowa. In 2010, Dr. Wahls began conducting clinical trials. In 2011, Dr. Wahls established Dr. Terry Wahls LLC to teach the public and clinicians about using diet and improved self-care as part of their wellness plan for reducing symptoms and improving quality of life in the setting of autoimmune disease. In 2015, the University of Iowa established the [https://donate.givetoiowa.org/s/1773/giving/19/interior.aspx?sid=1773&gid=2&pgid=509&cid=1288&dids=361.579&sort=1&appealcode=GFWEB Dr. Terry Wahls Research Fund] to support the Wahls lab through philanthropy. [https://www.nationalmssociety.org/About-the-Society/News/National-MS-Society-and-University-of-Iowa-Launch In 2016, Wahls and the University of Iowa launched a one-million-dollar study to investigate Dietary Approaches to Treat Multiple Sclerosis Related Fatigue, funded by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.] In that same year, Wahls retired from the VA to focus on conducting research at the University of Iowa. In 2017 Wahls established The Wahls Institute PLC, with a clinical focus on treating MS and neuroimmune patients.

Wahls is faculty for the [https://www.ifm.org/about/profile/terry-wahls/ Institute for Functional Medicine] and the [https://www.a4m.com/terry-wahls.html American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine], teaching Continuing Medical Education Courses on the use of diet, stress reduction, and exercise as adjunct therapies for the management of fatigue and improving quality of life in  neurodegenerative and neuroimmune conditions. She also lectures for multiple university sponsored Continuing Medical Education lectures, giving grand rounds to neurology departments, speaks at educational events sponsored by non-profit organizations, and appears on health and wellness podcasts.  Wahls advocates for educating MS and neuroimmune patients about the benefits of improving diet and modifiable lifestyle factors to reduce fatigue and improve quality of life as part of their treatment plans.


Terry and her partner, Jackie Reger, have two children, [[Zach Wahls|Zach]] and Zebby.<ref name=timeout>{{cite news|work=[[Time Out (magazine)|Time Out Chicago]]|url=http://timeoutchicago.com/arts-culture/gay-lesbian/14723929/zach-wahls| first=Jason A.|last= Heidemann|title=Zach Wahls|date=April 20, 2011|access-date=June 1, 2012}}</ref>
Terry and her partner, Jackie Reger, have two children, [[Zach Wahls|Zach]] and Zebby.<ref name=timeout>{{cite news|work=[[Time Out (magazine)|Time Out Chicago]]|url=http://timeoutchicago.com/arts-culture/gay-lesbian/14723929/zach-wahls| first=Jason A.|last= Heidemann|title=Zach Wahls|date=April 20, 2011|access-date=June 1, 2012}}</ref>

Revision as of 12:09, 6 July 2023

Terry Wahls
Born (1955-11-09) November 9, 1955 (age 68)
Occupation(s)Physician, writer

Terry Lynn Wahls (born November 9, 1955) is a physician who was an assistant chief of staff at Iowa City Veterans Administration Health Care and is a clinical professor of medicine at the University of Iowa. She has a private practice and conducts clinical trials. She was diagnosed with a chronic progressive neurological disorder and secondary progressive multiple sclerosis.[1][2]

Professional positions

In 2000 Wahls moved to Iowa City, Iowa, to become the associate chief of staff for ambulatory care at the Veterans Affairs(VA) Iowa City Medical Center and associate professor of medicine in the Carver College of Medicine at the University of Iowa. In that same year, Wahls was diagnosed with relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (MS) In 2004, Wahls was assigned to be part of the Institutional Review Board (IRB). In that role, Wahls reviewed clinical studies for the University of Iowa and the Iowa City Veteran Affairs Medical Center. (VAMC). In 2008, Wahls joined the multi-disciplinary team that served veterans with a history of traumatic brain injury in the Polytrauma Clinic at the Iowa City VAMC.  In 2008, Wahls was promoted to clinical professor of medicine at the University of Iowa. In 2010, Dr. Wahls began conducting clinical trials. In 2011, Dr. Wahls established Dr. Terry Wahls LLC to teach the public and clinicians about using diet and improved self-care as part of their wellness plan for reducing symptoms and improving quality of life in the setting of autoimmune disease. In 2015, the University of Iowa established the Dr. Terry Wahls Research Fund to support the Wahls lab through philanthropy. In 2016, Wahls and the University of Iowa launched a one-million-dollar study to investigate Dietary Approaches to Treat Multiple Sclerosis Related Fatigue, funded by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. In that same year, Wahls retired from the VA to focus on conducting research at the University of Iowa. In 2017 Wahls established The Wahls Institute PLC, with a clinical focus on treating MS and neuroimmune patients.

Wahls is faculty for the Institute for Functional Medicine and the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine, teaching Continuing Medical Education Courses on the use of diet, stress reduction, and exercise as adjunct therapies for the management of fatigue and improving quality of life in  neurodegenerative and neuroimmune conditions. She also lectures for multiple university sponsored Continuing Medical Education lectures, giving grand rounds to neurology departments, speaks at educational events sponsored by non-profit organizations, and appears on health and wellness podcasts.  Wahls advocates for educating MS and neuroimmune patients about the benefits of improving diet and modifiable lifestyle factors to reduce fatigue and improve quality of life as part of their treatment plans.

Terry and her partner, Jackie Reger, have two children, Zach and Zebby.[3]

The Wahls Protocol Diet

The diet promoted by Wahls to treat MS is a modified paleo diet, relying primarily on grass-fed meat, fish, leafy vegetables, roots, nuts, and fruit and restricting dairy products, eggs, grains, legumes, nightshade (solanaceous) vegetables, starches and sugar. Wahls has claimed that the diet alleviated the symptoms of her own multiple sclerosis.[4]

Wahls' promotion of her diet and lifestyle regimen as an important strategy for managing MS-related symptoms as well as other disorders has been criticized for relying too much on anecdotal evidence, for failing to initiate adequate research to verify the claims, and for Wahls' perceived conflicts of interest (selling numerous products and educational materials related to her protocol).[5][6] A 2020 Cochrane review found no research supporting efficacy or effectiveness of diet or vitamin supplementation for treatment of MS.[7]

Clinical neurologist Steven Novella has commented that Wahls "paint[s] a picture of reality that is at drastic odds with the evidence" and elevates "nutrition to a magical stature that is not based on a lick of published evidence".[8]

Selected publications

  • Minding My Mitochondria 2nd Edition (2010)
  • The Wahls Protocol: How I Beat Progressive MS Using Paleo Principles and Functional Medicine (2014)
  • The Wahls Protocol Cooking for Life: The Revolutionary Modern Paleo Plan to Treat All Chronic Autoimmune Conditions (2017)
  • The Wahls Protocol: A Radical New Way to Treat All Chronic Autoimmune Conditions Using Paleo Principles (2020)

References

  1. ^ Landau, Meryl Davids (19 December 2012). "An MS-Stricken Doctor Changes Her Diet ... and Reverses Her 'Irreversible' Decline". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 21 March 2013.
  2. ^ Rogers, Adrian (March 12, 2013). "Speaking of MS". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 21 March 2013.
  3. ^ Heidemann, Jason A. (April 20, 2011). "Zach Wahls". Time Out Chicago. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
  4. ^ "What Is the Wahls Protocol Diet and Does It Work for MS?". WebMD. WebMD, LLC. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
  5. ^ "Should Iowa professor promoting MS diet lead study to see if it works?". Des Moines Register. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  6. ^ Howard, Jonathan (2019). Cognitive Errors and Diagnostic Mistakes: Case-Based Guide to Critical Thinking in Medicine. Springer International Publishing. ISBN 978-3-319-93223-1. Retrieved 20 January 2019.
  7. ^ Parks, Natalie E.; Jackson-Tarlton, Caitlin S.; Vacchi, Laura; Merdad, Roah; Johnston, Bradley C. (19 May 2020). "Dietary interventions for multiple sclerosis-related outcomes". The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2020 (5): CD004192. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD004192.pub4. ISSN 1469-493X. PMC 7388136. PMID 32428983.
  8. ^ Novella, Stephen (2014). "Can Diet Cure MS?". NeuroLogica Blog. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
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