Posted on 12/08/2011 9:11:37 AM PST by decimon
A rare genetic variant which causes reduced levels of vitamin D appears to be directly linked to multiple sclerosis, says an Oxford University study.
UK and Canadian scientists identified the mutated gene in 35 parents of a child with MS and, in each case, the child inherited it.
Researchers say this adds weight to suggestions of a link between vitamin D deficiency and MS.
The study is in Annals of Neurology.
Multiple sclerosis is an inflammatory disease of the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord).
Although the cause of MS is not yet conclusively known, both genetic and environmental factors and their interactions are known to be important.
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"It would be important particularly in countries like Scotland and the rest of the UK where sunshine levels are low for large parts of the year. Scotland has the greatest incidence of multiple sclerosis of any country in the world."
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(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.co.uk ...
Wow my dad has MS and we have strong Irish and Scottish bloodlines - now I’m going to ensure Im more regular in taking my vitamin D. Wondering how long until there is a kit to test for the gene.
Vitamin D is key. To so many things.
I wouldn’t normally post this, but...
I have MS, my mother and her sister were diagnosed with MS, and my sister was diagnosed with MS. We’re Irish/German. On My father’s side (Icelandic/English) his brother had MS (died a few years ago).
Interestingly, one of my bosses once told me (I was working Grave shift at the time), said that he got terrible nerve pain if he didn’t get vitamin D shots. HE said if I felt sluggish on Grave, I should consider a supplement. I started to take Vitamin D at that time (about a week later), and it was like the switch of a light switch. I still have MS, but if I take vitamin D, it greatly reduces a lot of the problems I have. I told my dad about it (to tell my mother), and he took the vitamin D, and said that he felt much, much better with the nerve pain in his hands.
I share this, because anyone who may have issues might be skeptical, and I say, “TRY IT!”
Thank you for posting this, it has been a very good experience for me to be able to read it.
Ping
My wife’s MS gives her terrible pain in her feet and back.
I fwded this on to her. Thanks for posting.
You're welcome. Thanks for posting your experiences.
You're welcome. I hope your wife's condition improves.
Ping for people we know
MS bump
Thanks for the article.
which means I get the triple whammy: Scots/Irish/Welsh/English, and I live in Alaska. No wonder Vitamin D and cod liver oil are my absolute daily MUST-TAKE supplements.
Since vitamin D is synthesized from cholesterol, does the affected parent have lower than normal levels of cholesterol?
“Since vitamin D is synthesized from cholesterol, does the affected parent have lower than normal levels of cholesterol?”
Wow, I never even thought of that. My mother’s doctor in Nevada (she has since moved), talked with her and my dad, and told them that he had found that patients who were taking Zocor (the cholesterol drug), had had some improvement with their MS. The doctor told my dad that it may just be a fluke, but that most (or many) drugs are just created and then tested to see what they do, and that Zocor had been one of them, so he thought it was just a fluke, or that it could at least be. I have been reading about low fat diets for MS and apparently it’s supposed to help, and on one diet that had success (researched for 35 year, but not double blind, which is the only thing some people accept these days). That diet offered zero red meat for a year, and then only 3 oz on occasion thereafter, with only lean meats (white meat of poultry and white fish), being allowed, and only nonfat dairy.
Anyway, I know I didn’t answer your question, but hopefully I said something that matters.
Hmmmm....I’ve got some Scottish blood....and need to take a lot of Vit D3....double in winter....(12k iu)
I came across this video about how this lady beat her MS with the paleo diet. It’s very interesting and informative.
http://wimp.com/mindingmitochondria/
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