Bone-healthy nutrition practices are not limited to the bones. Vitamin D is a good case-in-point. It is well known that vitamin D is one of the most important nutrients for bone health, but researchers are finding that vitamin D is associated with many health problems unrelated to bones.

An article in the December 20, 2006 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association reported that a study of 257 US military personnel found that those with greater levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D in their blood had a significantly reduced risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS). The greatest reduction was seen in non-Hispanic whites. The researchers noted that this may have been because there was a greater range of vitamin D status in the white participants than there was in other ethnic groups. Although this study only shows an association with MS and does not prove cause and effect, it does provide at least another bit of support for maintaining good vitamin D status.

These researchers feel that their results demonstrate a need for clinical trials to determine if vitamin D supplementation can help to prevent MS.

Source
Munger, Kassandra L., et al. “Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels and risk of multiple sclerosis.” Journal of the American Medical Association 296, Pages 2832-2838