Advances and clues of nutritional adjuvant therapy for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease.

Abstract

Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT) is an inherited peripheral neuropathy with significant genetic heterogeneity and clinical variability. Currently, there are no specific drugs to cure the disease, and adjuvant therapies are used to alleviate the symptoms. By supporting the functions of nerves, bones, and muscles, as well as systemic metabolism, personalized intakes of energy and nutrients help slow down disease progression, delay CMT onset, relieve the suffering and pain of patients, and improve their quality of life. This review mainly discussed the research progress on energy and fat-manipulated diets (caloric restriction diet, ketogenic diet, and high-fat diet) and several nutrients (polyunsaturated fatty acids, phospholipids, copper, iron, zinc, selenium, vitamin A/D/E/C, and some vitamin Bs) in the treatment of CMT and related peripheral neuropathies, which is expected to encourage explorations on and applications of healthy diets and nutritional intakes from the viewpoint of clinical nutrition to improve the symptoms of CMT.