UK people with Multiple Sclerosis are 3X more likely to take Vitamin D
Remote testing of vitamin D levels across the UK MS population – a case control study
preprint Oct 16, 2020
Nicola Vickaryous PhD1, Mark Jitlal MSc1, Benjamin Meir Jacobs MRCP1, Rod Middleton BSc2,
Siddharthan Chandran PhD FRCP3, Niall John James MacDougall MD MRCP4,5, Gavin Giovannoni PhD
FRCP1,6,7 and Ruth Dobson PhD MRCP1,7*
1: Preventive Neurology Unit, Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine, Queen Mary University London, UK
2: UKMS Register, Swansea University Medical School, UK
3: Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, UK Dementia Research Institute at Edinburgh, University of Edinburgh
4: Neurology Department, Hairmyres Hospital, East Kilbride, UK.
5: Neurology Department, Institute of Neurological Sciences, Glasgow, UK 6: Blizard Institute, Queen Mary University London UK
7: Department of Neurology, Royal London Hospital, BartsHealth NHS Trust, London, UK:
Objective: The association between vitamin D deficiency and multiple sclerosis (MS) is well described. We set out to use remote sampling to ascertain vitamin D status and vitamin D supplementation in a cross-sectional study of people with MS across the UK.
Methods: People with MS and matched controls were recruited from across the UK. 1768 people with MS enrolled in the study; remote sampling kits were distributed to a subgroup. Dried blood spots (DBS) were used to assess serum 25(OH)D in people with MS and controls.
Results: 1768 MS participants completed the questionnaire; 388 MS participants and 309 controls provided biological samples. Serum 25(OH)D was higher in MS than controls (median 71nmol/L vs 49nmol/L). A higher proportion of MS participants than controls supplemented ( 72% vs 26% , p<0.001); people with MS supplemented at higher vD doses than controls (median 1600 vs 600 IU/day, p<0.001). People with MS who did not supplement had lower serum 25(OH)D levels than non-supplementing controls (median 38 nmol/L vs 44 nmol/L). Participants engaged well with remote sampling.
Conclusions: The UK MS population have higher serum 25(OH)D than controls, mainly as a result of vitamin D supplementation. Remote sampling is a feasible way of carrying out large studies.
📄 Download the pre-print PDF from Vitamin D Life
Most surveyed take 1,600 IU
- They should take >16,000 IU
75% have > 20ng
- Virtually all 20,000 MSers on Coimbra Protocol have >80 ng
Overview MS and vitamin D contains the following summar
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Multiple Sclerosis and (lots of) Vitamin D - book by patient on Coimbra protocol - Feb 2016 contains:
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Multiple Sclerosis 32 percent less likely among those with more than 32 ng of vitamin D – Dec 2019
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But unfortunately, very few MSers in the UK are getting enough Vitamin D to help
Increased use of D has the following
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