yulius hermanto
Vitamin D and Multiple Sclerosis
Introduction
Multiple Sclerosis is disease caused by inflammation process within nerve tissue, which the fatty myelin sheaths around the axons of the brain and spinal cord are damaged, thus lead to demyelination and scarring as well as a broad spectrum of signs and symptoms.
Disease onset usually occurs in young adults, and it is more common in women. It has a prevalence that ranges between 2 and 150 per 100,000. MS was first described in 1868 by Jean-Martin Charcot.
Multiple Sclerosis damaged the ability of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord to communicate with each other. Nerve cells communicate by sending electrical signals called action potentials down long fibers called axons, which are wrapped in an insulating substance called myelin. While in multiple sclerosis, the body's own immune system attacks and damages the myelin. When myelin is lost or damaged, the axons can no longer effectively conduct signals. Thus the communication of nerve tissue is impaired.
The name of multiple sclerosis refers to scars (scleroses—better known as plaques or lesions) particularly in the white matter of the brain and spinal cord, which is mainly composed of myelin. Although much is known about the mechanisms involved in the disease process, the cause remains unknown. Theories include genetics or infections. Different environmental risk factors have also been found.
Almost any neurological symptom can appear with the disease, whether sensory (paraesthesia, hypoesthesia) or muscle weakness, and often progresses to physical and cognitive disability.
Multiple Sclerosis has several forms of clinical manifestation, with new symptoms occurring either in discrete attacks (relapsing forms) or slowly accumulating over time (progressive forms). Between attacks, symptoms may go away completely, but permanent neurological problems often occur, especially as the disease advances.
Until now, there is no known cure for multiple sclerosis. Treatments attempt to return function after an attack, prevent new attacks, and prevent disability. Multiple sclerosis medications can have adverse effects or be poorly tolerated, and many patients pursue alternative treatments, despite the lack of supporting scientific study. The prognosis is difficult to predict; it depends on the subtype of the disease, the individual patient's disease characteristics, the initial symptoms and the degree of disability the person experiences as time advances. Life expectancy of patients is 5 to 10 years lower than that of the unaffected population.
Vitamin D and Multiple Sclerosis
Vitamin D is known as vitamin that important for bone health, because its helps calcium absorption in the gut, and calcium metabolism and excretion, thus maintain blood calcium level, and bone mineralization.
Several researchs have suggested that Vitamin D can cut mulitple slerosis incidence and prevent from its relapse. But, the explanation about it is not well described.
Vitamin D is believed as an agent that helps modify immune system functioning, also higher vitamin D level have shown effects of decreasing adverse immune overactivity that occurs in autoimmune diseases such Multiple Sclerosis.
Vitamin D can be synthesized in our body, especially in our skin by help of sun exposure. Thus an increased sun exposure can give higher vitamin D levels may help to protect against the risk of developing autoimmune diseases, such as multiple sclerosis.
Sun exposure, one of the simplest and easiest way to get vitamin D, skin with the help of Ultraviolet synthesize the vitamin D, thus sun exposure is linked to lower risk of multiple sclerosis. But prolong exposure of ultraviolet also not good for our health, since ultraviolet radiation is linked with the skin cancers.
Thus, proper amount of exposure is needed in order to get the benefits effects such as vitamin D synthesize but avoid the harmful effects such as skin cancers.
Eventhough, vitamin D is shown to be a protective factors for having multiple sclerosis, but multiple sclerosis itself is a complex disease, and the explanation of cause and mechanism isn't complete yet. Thus many factors are involved in development and progression of multiple sclerosis.
What, we can do are maximizing the protective efforts thus avoid or minimize the harmful factors. Basically it will give a better outcomes than do nothing.
Knowledges will always develop, like a tree, we as mankind should accept the new knowledges but not forget about the past, since the past is the foundation for us to step forward.
Multiple Sclerosis is disease caused by inflammation process within nerve tissue, which the fatty myelin sheaths around the axons of the brain and spinal cord are damaged, thus lead to demyelination and scarring as well as a broad spectrum of signs and symptoms.
Multiple Sclerosis damaged the ability of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord to communicate with each other. Nerve cells communicate by sending electrical signals called action potentials down long fibers called axons, which are wrapped in an insulating substance called myelin. While in multiple sclerosis, the body's own immune system attacks and damages the myelin. When myelin is lost or damaged, the axons can no longer effectively conduct signals. Thus the communication of nerve tissue is impaired.
The name of multiple sclerosis refers to scars (scleroses—better known as plaques or lesions) particularly in the white matter of the brain and spinal cord, which is mainly composed of myelin. Although much is known about the mechanisms involved in the disease process, the cause remains unknown. Theories include genetics or infections. Different environmental risk factors have also been found.
Almost any neurological symptom can appear with the disease, whether sensory (paraesthesia, hypoesthesia) or muscle weakness, and often progresses to physical and cognitive disability.
Multiple Sclerosis has several forms of clinical manifestation, with new symptoms occurring either in discrete attacks (relapsing forms) or slowly accumulating over time (progressive forms). Between attacks, symptoms may go away completely, but permanent neurological problems often occur, especially as the disease advances.
Until now, there is no known cure for multiple sclerosis. Treatments attempt to return function after an attack, prevent new attacks, and prevent disability. Multiple sclerosis medications can have adverse effects or be poorly tolerated, and many patients pursue alternative treatments, despite the lack of supporting scientific study. The prognosis is difficult to predict; it depends on the subtype of the disease, the individual patient's disease characteristics, the initial symptoms and the degree of disability the person experiences as time advances. Life expectancy of patients is 5 to 10 years lower than that of the unaffected population.
Vitamin D and Multiple Sclerosis
Vitamin D is known as vitamin that important for bone health, because its helps calcium absorption in the gut, and calcium metabolism and excretion, thus maintain blood calcium level, and bone mineralization.
Several researchs have suggested that Vitamin D can cut mulitple slerosis incidence and prevent from its relapse. But, the explanation about it is not well described.
Vitamin D is believed as an agent that helps modify immune system functioning, also higher vitamin D level have shown effects of decreasing adverse immune overactivity that occurs in autoimmune diseases such Multiple Sclerosis.
Vitamin D can be synthesized in our body, especially in our skin by help of sun exposure. Thus an increased sun exposure can give higher vitamin D levels may help to protect against the risk of developing autoimmune diseases, such as multiple sclerosis.
Sun exposure, one of the simplest and easiest way to get vitamin D, skin with the help of Ultraviolet synthesize the vitamin D, thus sun exposure is linked to lower risk of multiple sclerosis. But prolong exposure of ultraviolet also not good for our health, since ultraviolet radiation is linked with the skin cancers.
Thus, proper amount of exposure is needed in order to get the benefits effects such as vitamin D synthesize but avoid the harmful effects such as skin cancers.
Eventhough, vitamin D is shown to be a protective factors for having multiple sclerosis, but multiple sclerosis itself is a complex disease, and the explanation of cause and mechanism isn't complete yet. Thus many factors are involved in development and progression of multiple sclerosis.
What, we can do are maximizing the protective efforts thus avoid or minimize the harmful factors. Basically it will give a better outcomes than do nothing.
Knowledges will always develop, like a tree, we as mankind should accept the new knowledges but not forget about the past, since the past is the foundation for us to step forward.
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