Association Between Time Spent Outdoors and Risk of Multiple Sclerosis
Neurology Dec 2021, 10.1212/WNL.0000000000013045
Prince Sebastian, View ORCID ProfileNicolas Cherbuin, View ORCID ProfileLisa F Barcellos, Shelly Roalstad, Charles Casper, Janace Hart, Gregory S Aaen, View ORCID ProfileLauren Krupp, View ORCID ProfileLeslie Benson, Mark Gorman, Meghan Candee, Tanuja Chitnis, Manu Goyal, Benjamin Greenberg, Soe Mar, Moses Rodriguez, View ORCID ProfileJennifer Rubin, Teri Schreiner, View ORCID ProfileAmy Waldman, View ORCID ProfileBianca Weinstock-Guttman, Jennifer Graves, View ORCID ProfileEmmanuelle Waubant, View ORCID ProfileRobyn Lucas, US Network of Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Centers
Objective: This study aims to determine the contributions of sun exposure and ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure to risk of paediatric-onset multiple sclerosis (MS).
Methods: Children with MS and controls recruited from multiple centres in the USA were matched on sex and age. Multivariable conditional logistic regression was used to investigate the association of time spent outdoors daily in summer, use of sun protection, and ambient summer UVR dose in the year prior to birth and the year prior to diagnosis, with MS risk, adjusting for sex, age, race, birth season, child’s skin colour, mother’s education, tobacco smoke exposure, being overweight, and Epstein-Barr virus infection.
Results: 332 children with MS (median disease duration: 7.3 months) and 534 controls were included after matching on sex and age. In a fully adjusted model, compared to spending <30 minutes outdoors daily during the most recent summer, greater time spent outdoors was associated with a marked reduction in the odds of developing MS, with evidence of dose-response
- (30 minutes to 1 hour: adjusted odds ratio (AOR)=0.48, 95% confidence interval [95%CI] 0.23-0.99, p=0.05;
- 1-2 hours: AOR=0.19, 95%CI 0.09-0.40, p<0.001).
Higher summer ambient UVR dose was also protective for MS (AOR=0.76 per kJ/m2, 95%CI 0.62-0.94, p=0.01).
Conclusions: If this is a causal association, spending more time in the sun during summer may be strongly protective against developing paediatric MS, as well as residing in a sunnier location.
VitaminDWiki - MS and noonday sun
- Mutiple Sclerosis half as likely in children spending 30 to 60 minutes per day in the sun – Dec 2021
- Vitamin D and Sun conference – Germany June 2017
- People with health problems lacking noon sun (severe Multiple Sclerosis, etc.) have even lower levels of vitamin D – March 2015
- 3X more vitamin D from the sun if take MS drug Interferon-β – July 2012
- Vitamin D and sunshine are two ways to reduce MS relapses - May 2010
VitaminDWiki - MS and UV
- Multiple Sclerosis treated equally by UVB and weekly 50,000 IU of Vitamin D – RCT July 2023
- Mutiple Sclerosis half as likely in children spending 30 to 60 minutes per day in the sun – Dec 2021
- Sun reduces risk of Multiple Sclerosis via both Vitamin D and another way – Dec 2019
- UV helped EAE mice (MS) designed to not respond to Vitamin D – Oct 2019
- Multiple Sclerosis 2X more likely if low winter UV – June 2018
- Multiple Sclerosis half as likely if get plenty of sunshine (not a news item) – March 2018
- Clinically Isolated Syndrome progresses to Multiple Sclerosis, unless UVB treatments – RCT Dec 2017
- Vitamin D and Sun conference – Germany June 2017
- Multiple Sclerosis suppressed by an Ultraviolet wavelength not associated with Vitamin D (mice) – Nov 2016
- Multiple Sclerosis helped by UV – possibly via cytokines, etc. – Oct 2015
- Hypothesis – Multiple Sclerosis risk increases with low UV, viral infections, and antibiotics in childhood – March 2015
- How UVB reduces autoimmune diseases such as Multiple Sclerosis – April 2014
- UV decreases Multiple Sclerosis via cis-urocanic acid (and via vitamin D) – June 2013
- MS prevention by UV is 2X better than prevention by vitamin D levels – Jan 2012
- There is more in UV than vitamin D which suppresses MS in mice – April 2010
- UV produces more than vitamin D – Aug 2011
- Lack of UV 20X more associated with MS than any other variable – Dec 2010
- Hypothesis - more in sunshine than vitamin D to reduce MS – Feb 2010
- MS UV and Vitamin D – 2009
- Lack of UV increased offspring MS - April 2010
- Mouse MS: UVB but not Vitamin D reduced incidence - April 2010
VitaminDWiki - Overview MS and vitamin D
(MS varied with latitude before the use of Air Conditioning)
Clinical interventions have shown that Vitamin D can prevent, treat, and even cure Multiple Sclerosis, at a tiny fraction of the cost of the drugs now used to treat it, and without side effects.
- Fact: Low Vitamin D results in higher risk of getting MS
Increase latitude leads to decreased Vitamin D, which leads to increased risk of MS
Dark skinned people are far more likely to get MS (dark skin people typically have low vitamin D)
Elderly (who typically have low vitamin D) are more likely to get MS
Is there increased risk in people who already have diseases associated with low vitamin D - TB, for example ? ? ?
Women typically have 3X increased MS risk then men (note: women typically have 20% lower levels of vitamin D than men)
Exception: women in very sunny climates and dark-skinned women have the same MS risk as men
Obese are 60% more likely to get MS
Multiple Sclerosis 42X more likely if light brown skin and smoke (both associated with low vitamin D) – July 2020
MS recurrence is much higher in spring - the lowest time of the year for vitamin D
increase in clouds/rainfall (which reduces available Vitamin D) is associated with increased risk of MS (Scotland, Western Washington)
MS incidence has increased 70% in a decade while the incidence of vitamin D deficiency doubled
Less MS in those with outdoor occupations PDF file, not a web page - Fact: MS uses up Vitamin D
- Fact: Lower vitamin D (due to MS using up Vitamin D while fighting the disease) results in many other health problems (such as broken bones), so depleted vitamin D levels must be restored.
- Fact: Vitamin D looks so promising for preventing and treating MS that there were 25 INTERVENTION clinical trials as of Feb 2014
- Fact: Vitamin D reduced the MS relapse rate far better than Fingolimod which is now used for that purpose.
- Note: Fingolimod costs $25,000/year while vitamin D, which works better and has no side effects is 1000 times less expensive.
- Fact: 98% of the genes affected by Interferon are also affected by Vitamin D
- Note: 1 week of Interferon = $4,700, 1 week of vitamin D 10,000X lower cost
- Fact: MS Doctors in Brazil recommending 40-100 ng/mL of Vitamin D
- Fact: Many MS forums are recommending vitamin D to treat MS, with some taking 5,000 to 10,000 IU daily
Observation: Risk of going from pre-MS to MS reduced 68 percent with 7100 IU vitamin D – RCT Dec 2012- This is an observation instead of a fact - it has not yet been confirmed.
- Fact: VERY LARGE doses of vitamin D have CURED 2,000 people of MS in Brazil
- Controversy: UVB fron sunlight or UVB bulb may be BETTER than Vitamin D for reducing the risk of getting MS
- Hypothesis: In addition to Vitamin D there are many other photoproducts produced by UVB that may promote health.
Summary: lack of consensus on how much to prevent, treat, or cure MS.
- How much Vitamin D to prevent many diseases - such as MS
- How much Vitamin D is needed to treat MS? There is currently no agreement
The recommendations range from 40 to 100 ng - which can result of a dose ranging from 3,000 to 20,000 IU/day - How Vitamin D is needed to Cure MS?: It appears that 20,000-140,000 IU daily may be needed to CURE the disease
You must be under the supervision of a doctor who knows what to watch for in your individual situation.
High doses of Vitamin D cannot be used as a monotherapy.
You will need to adjust the cofactors: Typically increasing Magnesium and Vitamin K2, and reducing Calcium intake.
Your doctor will monitor these and might increase your intake of Vitamins B2, C, as well as Omega-3899 - Epstein-Barr virus increases risk of Multiple Sclerosis by 32X - Jan 2022
- Multiple Sclerosis treated by Vitamin D, recommends investigating high dose Coimbra - Oct 2021
- Multiple Sclerosis patients had fewer COVID-19 problems (Note: many MSers take Vitamin D) – April 30, 2021
- Vitamin D Resistance hypothesis confirmed by Coimbra high-dose vitamin D protocol – April 2021
- Multiple Sclerosis relapses cut in half by 100,000 IU of Vitamin D every 2 weeks– RCT 2019
VitaminDWiki - Noontime sun and D category
Noontime sun and D hassee also
No – 10 minutes per day of sun-UVB is NOT enough
Vitamin D Myths - SUN
Optimize vitamin D from the sun
Overview Suntan, melanoma and vitamin D
Overview UV and vitamin D
50 ng of Vitamin D - 100 hours of noon sunbathing OR 3 dollars of Vit D
3.3 X more likely to be Vitamin D deficient if wear long-sleeves – Oct 2022
Sun and UV
Avoiding the sun may be as bad as smoking - many studies
Vitamin D from the sun without the heat (silver-coated plexiglass)
Opinion: sun better than UV better than vitamin D
Fewer cognitive problems if more sun or Vitamin D
Which Is Worse - Avoiding Sunlight or Vitamin D Deficiency – April 2019
Have We Gotten Sunscreen Totally Wrong - Jan 2019
People who get little noon-day sun must supplement with Vitamin D – systematic review June 2017
The Greatest Public Health Mistake of the 20th Century (sunscreen block Vitamin D) - 2017
Does Less Sun mean More Disease 5 minute video
340,000 US deaths annually due to insufficient sun (some due to low vitamin D) – July 2020
Health benefit of Sunlight is more than Vitamin D in the blood - many studies
5 Amazing Properties of Sunlight You've Never Heard About
Vitamin D and Sun conference – Germany June 2017
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