by: Jonathan Benson, staff writer


(NaturalNews) For the first time, researchers have observed that having high vitamin D levels is clearly linked to warding off multiple sclerosis (MS), a chronic autoimmune disease that affects the brain and spinal cord. Published in the American Academy of Neurology journal Neurology, the study found that having high vitamin D levels helps prevent the development of MS in those who are beginning to observe symptoms of its onset.

"Previous studies have found similar results, but this is the first study to look at people who have just had the first symptoms of MS and haven't even been diagnosed with the disease yet," said Robyn Lucas, Ph.D., from Australian National University in Canberra, author of the study. "Other studies have looked at people who already have MS -- then it's hard to know whether having the disease led them to change their habits in the sun or in their diet."

Lucas and her team evaluated 216 people between the ages of 18 and 59, all of which had experienced initial symptoms of MS. They compared them to 395 people with no symptoms of MS, but that were of similar ages, sexes, and backgrounds. After calculating sun exposure and vitamin D levels, the researchers observed that for each 1,000 kilojoules of ultraviolet (UV) exposure a person experiences, his or her risk of having an MS "first event" drops by 30 percent.