| According to a study, women who take vitamin D supplements through multivitamins are 40 percent less likely to develop multiple sclerosis (MS) than women who do not take supplements. The study, which involved 187,563 women, is the first examination to question if MS is caused by lack of sunlight, which prevent the body from making its own vitamin D.
Researchers examined data collected from two large studies involving the women, one was a 20-year-old study and the other was a 10-year-old study. The participants’ diets and use of multivitamin supplements were measured in the beginning of the study and then again every four years. Out of the 187,563 women participating in the study, 173 developed MS during the course of it.
Researchers divided the large group of women into groups based on vitamin D use. The study found that the risk of developing MS was lower both for those with high intakes of vitamin D supplements (400 IU or more per day) and for those with high intakes from the supplements and food. However, the study also suggested that the participants whose intake of vitamin D was only from food did not have any lesser risk of developing MS.
Neurology January 13, 2004;62(1):60-5
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