Lack of Vitamin D May Cause MS

A new study suggests that a lack of vitamin D intake for a pregnant woman and a child's early years may increase the risk of that child developing multiple sclerosis if they have a genetic predisposition for the disease. The study, published in this week's issue of the journal PLoS Genetics, indicates that proteins activated by vitamin D bind to DNA that lies next to a gene implicated in MS and regulates the gene. The researchers state that an analysis of over 40,000 patients from Canada, Great Britain, Denmark, and Sweden showed that fewer people with MS were born in November and more in May, highlighting a risk factor that varies seasonally. MS is also more common among people who live in northern climates. MS is a common inflammatory disease of the central nervous system characterized by myelin loss, axonal pathology, and progressive neurological dysfunction. Vitamin D is produced when ultraviolet rays from sunlight strike the skin.