UK people with Multiple Sclerosis are 3X more likely to take Vitamin D - Oct 2020

Remote testing of vitamin D levels across the UK MS population – a case control study

preprint Oct 16, 2020
Nicola Vickaryous PhD1, Mark Jitlal MSc1, Benjamin Meir Jacobs MRCP1, Rod Middleton BSc2,
Siddharthan Chandran PhD FRCP3, Niall John James MacDougall MD MRCP4,5, Gavin Giovannoni PhD
FRCP1,6,7 and Ruth Dobson PhD MRCP1,7*
1: Preventive Neurology Unit, Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine, Queen Mary University London, UK
2: UKMS Register, Swansea University Medical School, UK
3: Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, UK Dementia Research Institute at Edinburgh, University of Edinburgh
4: Neurology Department, Hairmyres Hospital, East Kilbride, UK.
5: Neurology Department, Institute of Neurological Sciences, Glasgow, UK 6: Blizard Institute, Queen Mary University London UK
7: Department of Neurology, Royal London Hospital, BartsHealth NHS Trust, London, UK:

Objective: The association between vitamin D deficiency and multiple sclerosis (MS) is well described. We set out to use remote sampling to ascertain vitamin D status and vitamin D supplementation in a cross-sectional study of people with MS across the UK.

Methods: People with MS and matched controls were recruited from across the UK. 1768 people with MS enrolled in the study; remote sampling kits were distributed to a subgroup. Dried blood spots (DBS) were used to assess serum 25(OH)D in people with MS and controls.

Results: 1768 MS participants completed the questionnaire; 388 MS participants and 309 controls provided biological samples. Serum 25(OH)D was higher in MS than controls (median 71nmol/L vs 49nmol/L). A higher proportion of MS participants than controls supplemented (72% vs 26%, p<0.001); people with MS supplemented at higher vD doses than controls (median 1600 vs 600 IU/day, p<0.001). People with MS who did not supplement had lower serum 25(OH)D levels than non-supplementing controls (median 38 nmol/L vs 44 nmol/L). Participants engaged well with remote sampling.

Conclusions: The UK MS population have higher serum 25(OH)D than controls, mainly as a result of vitamin D supplementation. Remote sampling is a feasible way of carrying out large studies.

 Download the pre-print PDF from VitaminDWiki

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Most surveyed take 1,600 IU

• They should take >16,000 IU

75% have > 20ng

• Virtually all 20,000 MSers on Coimbra Protocol have >80 ng

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Overview MS and vitamin D contains the following summar

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
  
  
  There is less of an effect recently - air conditioning now allows people to stay indoors

  
  
  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: Increasing levels of Vitamin D is associated with lower MS risk, as well as lower risk of many other diseases

  
• 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.

• Coimbra Protocol (using Vitamin D) is safe and effective for Multiple Sclerosis and Autoimmune diseases – April 2022
• 54,000 IU of vitamin D daily with no Calcium (1,000 IU per kg: Coimbra protocol) – July 2024
• 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-3
• 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

Multiple Sclerosis and (lots of) Vitamin D - book by patient on Coimbra protocol - Feb 2016 contains:

Vitamin D Protocol used by Dr. Coimbra for Multiple Sclerosis etc.
Snips as of April 2016 http://www.vitamindprotocol.com/dr.-coimbra-s-ms-protocol.html

• 1,000 IU's vitamin D per kilogram as a first approximation
  (apparently increased/decreased depending of resulting vitamin D blood level)
• Vitamin B2, magnesium glycinate, boron, chromium picolinate, Omega 3 DHA, Zinc, Methylcobalamin form of B12, Choline, etc.
• Lack of B12 may affect 10%–15% of the general population and may be the most prevalent genetic risk factor for several human diseases
• Discontinue eating or drinking dairy products or calcium enriched foods or beverages, also no Ca supplements
• Drink as least 2.5 liters [85 ounces] of fluids, preferably water
• Required Tests:​ Vitamin D, Parathyroid, Blood calcium, urinary calcium

Multiple Sclerosis 32 percent less likely among those with more than 32 ng of vitamin D – Dec 2019

• Overview MS and vitamin D
• An opportunity - use Vitamin D to treat Multiple Sclerosis (has been used for 14 years) - Feb 2022
• Multiple Sclerosis treated when use high doses of vitamin D – meta-analysis May 2018
• Multiple Sclerosis: 10 percent fewer relapses for each 10 ng higher level of vitamin D – Meta-analysis April 2020
• Multiple Sclerosis: number needed to treat with vitamin D may be as low as 1.3 – Meta-analysis Oct 2013
• Multiple Sclerosis more likely if poor vitamin D genes - 22nd study – Aug 2017
• Multiple Sclerosis relapses cut in half by 100,000 IU of Vitamin D every 2 weeks– RCT 2019

UV and Sunshine reduces MS risk

• 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

Other things also help

• Multiple Sclerosis treated by 50,000 IU Vitamin D bi-weekly plus Omega-3 – RCT July 2018
• Multiple Sclerosis 40 percent less likely if consume tinned fish (Vitamin D and Omega-3) – Sept 2019
• Resveratrol treats Multiple Sclerosis and other autoimmune diseases – many studies
• Not a single case of multiple sclerosis in 15,000,000 people (plant-based diets)

High Dose Vitamin D and cofactors

• Coimbra protocol using high-dose Vitamin D is safe – April 2022
• The use of high dose Vitamin D (Coimbra Protocol) for multiple sclerosis in Germany – 2019
• Comparing High-dose vitamin D therapies MS and other health problems

Number of MS studies which are also in other categories

• 22 studies in Genetics - genes can restrict Vitamin D getting to the blood and to the cells
• 14 studies in Vitamin D Receptor - gene which restricts D from getting to the cells
• 7 studies in Vitamin D Binding Protein - gene which restricts D from getting to the cells
• 21 studies in Ultraviolet light - may be even better than Vitamin D in preventing and treating MS
• 9 studies in Omega-3 - which helps Vitamin D prevent and treat MS

But unfortunately, very few MSers in the UK are getting enough Vitamin D to help

Increased use of D has the following

People have been noticing, and increasing vitamin D (55 items)

Studies are showing increased Vitamin D consumption and associated
      Increased levels of vitamin D PLUS increased health

• Vitamin D is increasing in Greece: testing, supplementation, and levels – Jan 2024
• US Vitamin D levels increased 2001-2018 – Oct 2022
• After years of adding vitamin D, Finland now has 38 ng levels - March 2022
• Trends in vitamin D status around the world – Nov 2021
• Vitamin D levels increased in Saudi Arabia over a decade (more sun or supplements) – Sept 2021
• 26 X increase in Vitamin D prescriptions for youths in England in 8 years – Dec 2019
• Vitamin D levels continue to rise in the US - April 2019
• 93 pcnt of these Lupus patients supplemented with Vitamin D - Nov 2020
• UK people with Multiple Sclerosis are 3X more likely to take Vitamin D - Oct 2020
• Parkinson patients: 60 % taking Vitamin D – Dec 2019
• The use of Vitamin D to prevent prostate cancer doubled in a decade – May 2019
• Vitamin D levels continue to rise in the US - April 2019
• Vitamin D levels at Mayo Clinic increased over a decade – June 2018
• Vitamin D levels in US: percent having more than 40 ng doubled (2001-2010) - Dec 2016
• Rickets almost eradicated in counties giving free Vitamin D, perhaps the world can learn – Dec 2019
• Vitamin D in US children: those having more than 40 ng increased 60 percent (2001-2010) - Dec 2016
• 4 times fewer with vitamin D deficiency in just 4 years ( Connecticut) – March 2016
• 20X increase in vitamin D sold and 36 percent decrease in osteoporosis business in Australia – Nov 2013
• Many more people now have vitamin D levels above 50 ng, especially seniors – May 2015
  • has the following chart for one US county