Multiple Sclerosis

If you compare your brain to a telephone, the nervous system that carries messages to and from the rest of your body would serve as the phone wires.  If damage occurs to the wires, the messages would be distorted, weak or cut off.

That’s what happens to people with multiple sclerosis (MS). Normally, nerves are encased in a protective covering called myelin.  With multiple sclerosis, the myelin becomes inflamed and eventually dissolves.  Over time, scar tissue (sclerosis) accumulates where the myelin used to be.  “Multiple” sclerosis occurs in scattered locations in the spinal cord and brain. Nerve impulses that travel through nerves slow down considerably or come to a complete halt. This causes the symptoms of MS, which can include:

• Weakness
• Numbness
• Poor coordination
• Poor bladder function
• Transient blindness in one eye

No one knows what causes MS, but infection and other immunity factors are possiblities. People most susceptible to MS are:

• White adults between 20 and 40 years old
• People whose siblings or parents already have the disease
• Women (at a ratio of three women to every two men) 

While no cure exists for multiple sclerosis, you can take several steps to make living with the disease easier. These include: 

• Getting plenty of rest.
• Minimizing stressful situations, since stress seems to aggravate the symptoms.
• Avoiding hot showers or baths, since they can aggravate symptoms. (Cool baths or swimming in a pool may improve symptoms by lowering body temperature.)
• Getting regular exercise (physical therapy may be helpful).
• Having body massages to help maintain muscle tone.
• Getting professional, supportive psychological counseling.
• Taking prescribed medication.

Used with permission from A Year of Health Hints by Don R Powell, PHD and the American Institute for Preventive Medicine, copyright 2010. www.healthylife.com