Can Sun rays Prevent Multiple Sclerosis

View PDF | Print View
by: StephanieGourdol
Total views: 29
Word Count: 568
Date: Thu, 3 Mar 2011 Time: 6:56 PM
0 comments

We've spent the past few decades discussing how important it is to stay out of the sun. We completely understand the dangers connected with it and do everything we can think of to keep it away from us. We don many layers of the highest SPF sunscreens that we can buy. We place big old floppy hats on our heads. We put on long pants and sleeves even during the hottest months of the year. We usually stick to the shade--some folks may even carry parasols and umbrellas just to make sure they have exactly no contact with the sun. Now we are beginning to realize that sunlight can actually help us. Can you really be helped by the sun's rays?
A new study has been done and it shows that people who allow some time in direct natural light aren't as likely to get MS as the people who do everything they can to keep out of the sun. Originally the research was to see how Vitamin D affected the indications of Multiple Sclerosis. It didn't take much time for them to realize that it is the Vitamin D our bodies make after exposure to sunlight that is at the center of the issue.
We've known for a very long time that the sun's rays and Vitamin D can slow down the way the immune system contributes to MS. This particular study, though, is concentrated on how the sun's rays affects the people who are starting to experience the very earliest of MS symptoms. The objective of the study is to discover how sunlight and Vitamin D might have an affect on the symptoms doctors call "precursor" to actual symptoms of the disease.
Unfortunately there are not a massive amount of ways to really quantify the hypothesis of the study. The goal of the study is to determine if sunlight can actually prevent the disease. Sadly, the only real way to know whether or not this is accurate is to monitor a person over his or her entire life. This is the only way to effectively evaluate the currently existent levels of Vitamin D in a person's blood before the symptoms of MS start to show themselves. The way it stands these days, and has stood (widely recognized) for a long time is that people who live in warm and sunny climates and who get more exposure to direct sunlight are less likely to develop MS than those who live in dark or cold climates and get very little exposure to the sun.
The fact that the chance of acquiring skin cancer increases proportionally to the amount of time you spend in direct sunlight (without protection) is also a problem. So, in an attempt to stave off one condition, you could be causing yourself to develop a different one. Of course, if you ever get skin cancer early on enough you are far more likely to cure it. MS even now has no cure.
So should you acquire more sunlight to counteract MS from setting in? Talk to your medical doctor to figure out if this is an excellent plan. Your physician will find out if you are vulnerable for the disease (and how much) by checking out your genetics, medical history and current health. From here your doctor should be able to help you decide the best course of action.

About the Author

This uniquely talented writer offers interesting resources about Fast Easy Diets and even on Healthy Diets