What Causes Multiple Sclerosis?

To this day doctors and scientist don’t know yet what causes Multiple Sclerosis, but there are now more studies being done and there is a lot of interesting information that advocate the idea that any of the following factors may have something to do with so many people, mainly young people, showing up with the early signs of MS:

• A person's living environment
• Genetics may have something to do with it also or
• Possibly even a virus may play a role

THE ENVIRONMENT FACTOR IN MS

Results from various epidemiological studies show several interesting trends regarding the question of what causes multiple sclerosis. For example, different populations and ethnic groups have a markedly different prevalence of MS.

Multiple Sclerosis is especially common in:

• Scotland
• Scandinavia and
• Throughout northern Europe

In the United States for example, the prevalence of MS is higher in whites than in other racial groups.

Studies also show that Multiple Sclerosis is more common in certain parts of the world, but if you move from an area with higher risk to one of lower risk, you obtain the risk of your new home if the move takes place prior to your adolescence years.

I was born in the belly button of the Americas (Nicaragua). I later moved to the United States during my late teens. There is no sure way to know if I increased my probabilities of coming down with MS when I did that. I would like to believe that a change in address cannot be sufficient of a reason for something as terrible as being diagnosed with MS.

The data is suggestive that exposure to some environmental agent encountered before puberty may predispose a person and be the reason behind the question of what causes multiple sclerosis.

What is more, MS is a disease of temperate climates. Its incidence increases with distance from the equator. Also there have been "epidemics" of MS -- for example, the group of people living off the coast of Denmark after WWII, suggesting an environmental cause.

The distribution of Multiple Sclerosis in Europe, showing many exceptions to the previously used notion of north-south gradient, requires more explanation than simply a prevalence-latitude relationship.

A recent study to help answer the question of what causes multiple sclerosis said that “Frequency of MS data imply that racial and ethnic differences are important in influencing the worldwide distribution of MS and that its geography must be interpreted in terms of the probable discontinuous distribution of genetic susceptibility alleles, which can however be modified by environment. Because the environmental and genetic determinants of geographic gradients are by no means mutually exclusive, the race versus place controversy is, to some extent, a useless and sterile debate.”

THE GENETICS FACTOR IN MS

A closer examination of the more recent data on MS prevalence has forced changes on some of the previously held concepts, the most interesting of which is the appreciation of the greater influence of genetic factors on disease acquisition.

The rarity of MS among Samis, Turkmen, Uzbeks, Kazakhs, Kyrgyzis, native Siberians, North and South Amerindians, Chinese, Japanese, African blacks and New Zealand Maoris, as well as the high risk among Sardinians, Parsis and Palestinians, clearly indicate that the different susceptibilities of distinct racial and ethnic groups are an important determinant of the uneven geographic distribution of the disease and the mystery behind what causes multiple sclerosis in certain parts of the world more than others.

Scientist and researchers believe that what causes multiple sclerosis may in part be inherited (genetics contribute to the increased risk of Multiple Sclerosis seen in family members). First, second and third degree relatives of people with MS are at increased risk of developing the disease.

On my mother’s side of the family, I do have several relatives that have had various autoimmune diseases such as Lupus or Scleroderma. Again, as with the Geographic’s factor, there is no definite conclusion that could be made from this alone and no answer to what causes multiple sclerosis could be found here.

The one factor that do causes some concern on my part is that siblings of an affected person have a 2%-5% risk of developing MS and I have a small daughter to think about.

If you keep up with the news around Multiple Sclerosis, it is now clear than ever before that researchers believe that what causes multiple sclerosis has to do with more than one gene that makes a person more likely to get MS.

Some scientists theorize that MS develops because a person is born with a genetic predisposition to react to some environmental agent, which, upon exposure, triggers an autoimmune response.

Sophisticated new techniques for identifying genes may help answer questions about the role of genetics in the development of Multiple Sclerosis.

IS A VIRUS RESPONSIBLE?

To this day, there is no solid evidence that a virus could be responsible for folks getting MS.

Some of the most frequently mention possible culprits of MS are:

• The Epstein-Barr virus (responsible for causing mononucleosis)
• The varicella zoster virus
• The hepatitis vaccine

I have read and watch interviews of people arguing this or that but what I know for sure is that many years have passed and the one thing that is true is that this belief has not been proven.

There is growing evidence suggesting that hormones, including sex hormones, can affect and be affected by the immune system.

For example, both estrogen and progesterone, two important female sex hormones, may suppress some immune activity. Testosterone, the primary male hormone, may also act as an immune response suppressor.

During pregnancy, estrogen and progesterone levels are very high, which may help explain why pregnant women with MS usually have less disease activity. The higher levels of testosterone in men may partially account for the fact that women with MS outnumber men with MS by 2-3 to 1.

Nowadays, the prevailing theory is that it involves an auto-immune response, where the body’s defenses essentially turn on itself.

Finally, there is growing evidence that nutrition and diet could also play an important role in the incidence of MS around the world.

Back in the 1950’s Dr. Roy L. Swank M.D. published an article titled “Multiple Sclerosis: A correlation of the Incidence with Dietary Fat” Click here to read the American Journal of the Medical Sciences original article in which he suggested that the frequency of MS was related to the amount of the daily consumption of animal fat and butterfat.

If you were to examine this more closely you’ll discover that until about 200 years ago, the fat intake of our Western ancestors was probably about 60 grams (two ounces) daily and the majority of this fat came from vegetables and fish oils.

I definitely believe that it is worth your time and effort, to pay a closer look at this. You can visit my page on nutrition and dietary guidelines to read more specific information.

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