One of the best things you can do for your health -- getting enough exposure to sunshine so your body makes the right amount of vitamin D -- can greatly reduce your risks of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a study in the Journal of American Medical Association, the bastion of conventional medicine.
This latest vitamin D study coming from Harvard University details a massive review of some 7 million U.S. military patients from which 257 contracted MS. Then, researchers compared the vitamin D levels in MS patients to randomly chosen military patients who never developed the disease.
The benefits, at least among Caucasians (the majority of the study participants), was stunning: As vitamin D levels grew, the chances of a patients developing MS fell. And for patients whose vitamin D levels were in the top 20 percent, their MS risks plunged by 62 percent.
As easy as it is to get a healthy amount of sunshine in the summer, it can equally as difficult to do during the winter. Before you turn to cod liver oil or an oral supplement, however, I don't advise taking either one unless you have your blood levels monitored regularly.
Journal of the American Medical Association, Vol. 296, No. 23, December 20, 2006: 2832-2838Reuters December 19, 2006Medpage Today December 19, 2006