"Lack of Sunshine Triggers Faulty MS Gene"
 

Just stumbled across this.

http://www.abc.net.au/science/articl...05/2483112.htm

Interesting...the comment about when you're born and it's relationship to MS is a bit scary for me.

My birthday is in May.

Personally, I think it's a lot of hooey! I was born and raised in NM, at an altitude above sea level, and got my share of sunshine.

I recall getting burned several times on my shins and thighs. so I am more worried about skin cancer than a trigger for MS.

Agreed. I too was born in NM but grew up in NY. I got my suntans through sunburns ;)

I've yet to see any birth-location/MS arguments that can hold water. "Where" doesn't lead to a reason for the Cause of the disease.

Niko:cool:

If this were the case, why in my immediate family as well as extended family I am the only one with MS. I am pretty sure that my 9 brothers and sisters grew up in the same environment I did. LOL

With 10 kids all about a year apart, we were outside all the time except in rain. Cloudy days, snow, sunshine, whatever my mom took every opportunity to have us all outside as much as possible. Do you blame her? LOL

The article does say an environmental risk factor, however, there has to be more than just the vitamin D factor to trigger the MS.

I have often wondered if lack of saturated fats in our mom's breast milk has something to do with us getting MS. Breast milk is fatty (appx 50% fat) but that fat helps build healthy myelin in babies. To me, that seems more of a viable risk factor than the vitamin D theory.

Another very good point! My family (mult-generations) lived in the same area. Yet, I am the only one.

Research need to look at other areas. Geography isn't the answer.

Niko

I got plenty of sun as a kid, being a tomboy. Outdoors was where I wanted to be, lol.

I have normal levels of Vit D (been tested twice), so that appears to shoot down that theory for me. :(

same here we all live around here and no one in family has it but me, and i lived in the sun winter or summer ate dirt played with deadly germs and never got anything but scolded for being a mess. now god forbid you look at a germ its so omg wrong:Bang-Head: I think in efforts to safeguard us and keep us away from GERMS we have made the species susceptible to basic illness, more so than 20 yrs ago

I agree Kelly use monies like this a lot more wisely

now I heard if you hold a hula hoop above your head like so and spin around counter clockwise saying huya huya huya 3 times real quick it will cure you:Bang-Head:

Thanks Nat for the article, sorry havent talked in a bit hope you are doing well:hug:

Had more than my share of sunburns. In Florida even my hair part burnt.
I was born in December, not going with this theory. Do Eskimos get MS?

MI lifer, water/sun baby, born in Nov. Doomed from the start. Cursed! :mad: I used Coppertone to boot!

Seems to me that any and all research that leads to an eventual understanding of something is valuable. It's rather insular to assume that one or another piece of a huge puzzle is the only approach. Every piece matters to someone.

I don't mean to offend, but, there is a much, much bigger picture here and elimination is as important as isolation when it comes to unknown/unidentified factors. ;)

You do have a point. All research leads to learning. But until we have an answer, the research should go in all directions.

And no offense taken :)

Niko:cool:

you hit a good point Cin, thanks but its still comes off as silly, but then I am sure using some mold as a medicine was an odd thing in its time, sure worked out good for polio

I'm not so sure that the month I was born in is the reason I have MS. I think the MS has more to do with the fact that my parents gave me and my sister dehydrated milk instead of regular milk. (I've asked why they didnt just buy milk at the store that didnt have to be mixed...they dont know why)

I didnt even realize that milk came out of cows in a liquid form until I visited my great aunt on her farm when I was 5. She and my grandma showed me how to milk a cow. (amazing that the cow didnt kick me)

I was outside all the time as a child. My grandma used to tease me that I was "brown as an indian" from being outside so much. I'd stay outside until the sun went down and the street lights came on, and sometimes a little longer than that. I liked being outside then.

I do think that something environmental might be the cause of my MS.

My biggest suspect for that is the mononucleosis that I had in '96...and the fever I had during that. A fairly consistent 103 degrees for most of a week or two. And a constant drainage of....something....from my nose for two weeks. (it's TMI to describe that, other than it was constant. I had to sleep on my side so I wouldnt drown...that's if I was able to sleep. It was constant and in copious amounts)

No offense taken, AMN. If you look at things from a scientists viewpoint, all the possibilities can overwhelming and you have to start somewhere. Again, the article did say a "risk factor" not a cause.

I am sure there are many risk factors and eventually one day they will be able to list them confidently as they do conditions like heart disease or diabetes.

Very true, Kelly. I feel the same way. I do think that we all have the same weak "link" if you will. Whether that link is a gene, genome, or epigenome who knows and what triggers the link to cause MS may be as varied as the symptoms it causes.

Oh, btw, my aunt has been a picture of health her whole life. She is now in the hospital and has been for a while. She had some sort of virus, they don't know what, and now is suffering from some sort of demyelinating syndrome and neuropathy. She can't walk anymore and can't use her arms as they are too weak. Makes you think, huh?

I don't mean to offend

******

You want to offend me, you gotta try harder!!!!!

In Yahoo computer page news I read about them making correlation between Vit, D and MS. Like so much MS news, I wait for it to be repeated, see how it can benefit me and my kids (of course I worry about genetic links, sun, etc. I'm a Mother!!) Just waiting now.

I think as moms we worry about it and it is always in the back of our minds but our kids worry about it too. Well, I can only speak for mine. Both DDs have shared that concern with me. As I have explained to them though, they have a greater chance of getting essential tremors (something they can visually see and relate to easier) than they do MS. So far there are 4 of us with essential tremors which is a definitely a hereditary condition.

As for the Vit D theory, it is funny how we all think about our childhoods and how much we were out in the sun. I thought about it some more and maybe it is not how much we got but how much our ancestors got. I am 3rd generation born American. My ancestors were from Ireland, Canada, and Czech/Ukraine. Their lack of sunshine could have created a weak link. Kind of goes back to the genomes and epigenomes.

I can remember on a followup visit to my orthopaedist after getting one of my knees scoped back in 2000, he told me to watch out, that Fibro patients were later getting dxd with MS...I didn't remember the conversation until I started seeing a neuro for sxs. I sometimes wonder if Fibro is a precursor to MS...
It seems that there's got to be something triggering all of the new cases of MS...maybe plastics? Maybe microwave ovens? Maybe computer radiation? Hmmm...

And i thought a lack of sunshine brought out my "B" gene! Actually my endo tested my vit D the last time i went she was sure there is a link. My neuro however said it was like the great Vit E drug a few years ago that really didn't do anything for anyone.