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Multiple sclerosis and infants fed on diets deficient in vitamin A or in selenium and vitamin E
Insights
Early childhood nutrition, specifically insufficient vitamin A or selenium, may be a necessary factor for developing multiple sclerosis (MS) later in life. This hypothesis considers geographical and familial patterns of MS prevalence.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Nutritional Science
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Multiple sclerosis (MS) exhibits distinct epidemiological patterns, including geographical clustering and varying prevalence rates.
- Familial tendencies and high prevalence in specific regions like the Orkney and Shetland Islands suggest complex etiological factors.
- Existing research on MS and related conditions provides a basis for exploring nutritional influences.
Purpose of the Study:
- To hypothesize the role of early childhood nutrition in the development of multiple sclerosis (MS).
- To investigate the potential necessity of specific nutrient deficiencies in the onset of MS later in life.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of characteristic features of MS, including geographical distribution and familial aggregation.
- Consideration of existing research on MS and related subjects.
- Formulation of a hypothesis based on observed epidemiological data.
Main Results:
- MS prevalence decreases towards the equator among Caucasians.
- Unusually high MS prevalence is noted in the Orkney and Shetland Islands.
- A hypothesis is proposed linking early nutritional deficiencies to later MS onset.
Conclusions:
- Insufficient intake of vitamin A or selenium during the first six months of infancy may be a necessary, though not sufficient, condition for developing MS.
- Vitamin E's role in protecting vitamin A against degradation is also considered a potential contributing factor.
Abstract:
The characteristic features of multiple sclerosis (MS) include indications that its foundations are laid in early childhood as evidence by instances of the clustering of cases in particular localities by place of birth. Then there is the pattern of distribution in which the prevalence of MS among Caucasians progressively diminishes as the equator is approached, and the familial tendency of the disease to occur in close relatives of those who suffer from it. What is perhaps the most intriguing of all is the prevalence in the Orkney and Shetland Islands which is the highest in the world as far as is known. These and various other features, when considered in connection with the results of the research work which has been carried out on MS and on related subjects, provide reasonable grounds on which to base the hypothesis that the feeding of newborn infants over a period of approximately six months on diets containing insufficient vitamin A or selenium (Se) and to a lesser extent the vitamin E necessary to safeguard vitamin A against peroxidative degradation is a necessary condition but not a sufficient condition for the possible onset of the disease later in life.