Dr Olivia Wills secures MS Australia grant to investigate whether lifestyle-based weight loss alters mouth bacteria and improves health outcomes
University of Wollongong (UOW) researcher Dr Olivia Wills has been awarded a $24,500 MS Australia Incubator Grant to investigate whether lifestyle-based weight loss can reshape the bacteria living in the mouths of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) and whether those changes are linked to better health outcomes. The one-year grant is part of MS Australia's latest $2.8 million research funding round.
"People living with MS who also live with overweight or obesity often experience worse symptoms and reduced treatment effectiveness. While healthy eating and regular exercise are known to help, responses vary widely between individuals. This project explores a new piece of the puzzle to see whether differences in mouth bacteria help explain why," Dr Wills said.
Her project, "Oral microbiome changes following lifestyle-based weight loss in MS", is the first of its kind to examine whether structured changes to diet, exercise and behaviour can alter the oral microbiome – the community of bacteria living in the mouth – in people with relapsing remitting MS, the most common type of MS.
Over six months, participants in an existing UOW clinical trial will undertake a program combining diet, exercise and behaviour change therapy. Saliva samples collected at the start and end of the program will be analysed to determine whether beneficial bacteria increase and potentially harmful bacteria decrease. Researchers will also examine changes in fatigue and mood.
The study could open the door to more personalised, microbiome-informed lifestyle interventions for people living with MS and highlight the mouth as an unexpected but important window into neurological health.
MS is an immune-mediated condition in which the body mistakenly attacks the brain and spinal cord, damaging myelin, the protective coating around nerve fibres. The disease can affect mobility, vision, cognition and energy levels. In 2025, more than 37,700 Australians are living with MS, a 77.4 per cent increase since 2010. The total economic burden of the disease reached $3b in 2024.
