Vitamin D Benefits People with Multiple Sclerosis
It has long been known that vitamin D deficiency is linked to an increased risk of developing Multiple Sclerosis. And also, it has been shown that people who already have MS and low levels of vitamin D are more likely to have greater disability and a worse prognosis in terms of the progression of the disease.
Another study showing the relationship of Vitanin D and Multiple Sclerosis has been published in the Journal Neurology.
Researchers at Johns Hopkins gave the study subjects, 40 people with relapsing-remitting MS, either 10,400 IU or 800 IU of vitamin D3 supplements daily for six months. Blood tests at the start of the study and again at three and six months measured the amount of vitamin D in the blood and the response in the immune system’s T cells, which play a key role in MS. The people taking the high dose had a reduction in the percentage of inflammatory T cells related to MS severity, The people taking the low dose did not have any noticeable changes in the percentages of their T cell subsets.
“We hope that these changes in inflammatory T cell responses translate to a reduced severity of disease,” said lead study author Peter Calabresi, MD. “Other clinical trials are underway to determine if that is the case. More research is needed to confirm these findings with larger groups of people and to help us understand the mechanisms for these effects, but the results are promising. Vitamin D has the potential to be an inexpensive, safe and convenient treatment for people with MS”.
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- P. A. Calabresi. Safety and immunologic effects of high- vs low-dose cholecalciferol in multiple sclerosis. Neurology, 2015; DOI