Research suggests that having higher circulating levels of vitamin D is associated with a reduced risk for multiple sclerosis.
Multiple sclerosis is among the most common neurological diseases in young adults, affecting 350,000 individuals in the United States and 2 million worldwide.
Many and varied arguments support a significant role for vitamin D in multiple sclerosis. In animal studies, vitamin D prevents and improves experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis.
Epidemiologically, latitude, past exposure to sun and the serum level of vitamin D influence the risk of multiple sclerosis, with, furthermore, significant links existing between these different factors.
Clinically, most multiple sclerosis patients have low serum levels of vitamin D and are in a state of insufficiency or even deficiency compared to the international norm, which has been established on a metabolic basis.
Large therapeutic trials using vitamin D in multiple sclerosis are still lacking, but the first results of phase I/II studies are promising. In the meantime, while awaiting the results of future therapeutic trials, it can no longer be ignored that many multiple sclerosis patients have a lack of vitamin D, which could be detected by a serum titration and corrected using an appropriate vitamin D supplementation in order to restore their serum level to within the normal range.
From a purely medical point of view, vitamin D supplementation appears in this light to be unavoidable in order to improve the general state of multiple sclerosis patients. Furthermore, it cannot currently be ruled out that this supplementation could also be neurologically beneficial.
References:
1. Munger KL, Levin LI, Hollis BW, Howard NS, Ascherio A. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels and risk of multiple sclerosis. JAMA. 2006 Dec 20;296(23):2832-8. PMID: 17179460.
2. Pierrot-Deseilligny C. Clinical implications of a possible role of vitamin D in multiple sclerosis. J Neurol. 2009 Apr 28. PMID: 19399382.
