Several studies have already found that people who are vitamin D deficient have an increased risk of multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disease in which the coating around nerve cells, called myelin sheaths, is damaged. But knowing whether or not to take a vitamin D supplementation remained a subject of debate.
Researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore (United States) seem to have decided. They say vitamin D supplementation could be a treatment strategy for people with multiple sclerosis.
For their study, they analyzed the effects of vitamin D supplementation in 40 adults aged 18 to 55 with relapsing multiple sclerosis with periods of relapse. assignment. Their blood levels of vitamin D were analyzed and then each took either 10,400 IU (high dose) or 800 IU (low dose) of vitamin D3 daily for 6 months. For comparison, the recommended standard daily vitamin D intake for adults aged 18-70 is 600 IU.
The results showed that patients who took a high dose of vitamin D3 had a drop in T lymphocytes, the cells that are one of the indicators of disease activity. On the other hand, no decrease in these T cells was recorded in those who had taken the lowest dose of vitamin D.
Neither patient group reported any adverse side effects, and during the six-month experience, one person in each group experienced a flare-up. disease.
“These results are very exciting because they show that vitamin D has the potential to be an inexpensive, safe and practical treatment for people with multiple sclerosis. But these results need to be confirmed with larger groups of people in order to understand the mechanisms of this protective effect,” said Dr. Peter Calabresi, who led this study published in the journal Neurology.
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