High doses of vitamin D can dampen down the hyper active immune response linked to multiple sclerosis (MS), a study has found. Low levels of vitamin D in the blood are known to be associated with an increased risk of developing MS. Patients with the disease are also likely to have a more active condition and greater disability if they lack the vitamin. For the new study, 40 patients with relapsing-remitting MS – a form of the disorder characterised by active and passive periods – received either 10,400 or 800 international units (IU) of vitamin D3 supplements every day for six months. The first dose was significantly higher than the recommended daily allowance for vitamin D of 600 IU. Patients taking the high dose experienced a reduction in the percentage of specific immune system T-cells related to MS activity.
Side effects from the vitamin supplements were minor and did not differ between patients taking the higher and lower doses. One person in each group had a relapse of disease activity, but while the study tested the effect of vitamin D supplements on the immune system it did not look closely at the clinical impact of the treatment. MS destroys the fatty myelin sheath that insulates nerve fibres and assists the transmission of electrical signals. It can cause symptoms ranging from mild tingling or numbness to fullblown paralysis.
Read More: Vitamin D could cure MS
Source: Timesofindia.indiatimes.com
