Re: Stress May Increase Risk for Developing Multiple Sclerosis

[Guest guest]

Hi Francesca:

On the subject of MS ......... a careful study of the lives of

hundreds of MS sufferers done at the University of Montreal,

published about a year ago, found only one thing that seemed to be a

common thread. They found that an inordinately large proportion of

families with a case of MS had owned pet birds.

Since then I have been stunned by how often I have mentioned this to

people who have replied with something like: " That's odd, because my

sister (or daughter, or whatever) has MS and we owned pet birds " . I

also delicately inquired of an acquaintance, who had recently been

diagnosed with MS, whether their family had owned birds. The answer

was yes. This has now happened to me four or five times in the past

year - and this isn't a topic that arises often. One occasion was at

a pet shop that sold birds. When I mentioned this to them they just

stood there with their mouths open. When they recovered their

composure they said an employee had left the week before because she

had come down with MS.

Clearly this is not conclusively proven. But I now find it difficult

to believe it is all coincidence. There was no apparent connection

with any other types of pet.

Rodney.

>

> The possibility that psychological stress may play a role in the

> development of multiple sclerosis has gained support from a Danish

study

> that found that parents who lose a child have an increased risk of

> developing the disease, which destroys the protective sheath around

the

> nerves.

>

> People who lost a child were 50 percent more likely to develop MS

than

> parents who did not lose a child, the study found.

>

> In today's issue of Neurology, the researchers said the risk was

even

> greater for parents whose child died unexpectedly. They were more

than twice

> as likely to develop MS as parents who did not lose a child.

>

> A team led by Jiong Li of the University of Aarhus used Denmark's

extensive

> system of medical records, identifying all children younger than 18

who died

> over a 16-year period, and their parents. Then, over 10 years, they

compared

> these families with similar families in which a child did not die.

[Guest guest]

Hi Francesca:

You could read this:

http://www.mssociety.ca/en/research/PC020913.htm

or: http://snipurl.com/4zit

Rodney.

>

> > Hi Francesca:

> >

> > On the subject of MS ......... a careful study of the lives of

> > hundreds of MS sufferers done at the University of Montreal,

> > published about a year ago, found only one thing that seemed to

be a

> > common thread. They found that an inordinately large proportion

of

> > families with a case of MS had owned pet birds.

[Guest guest]

There is more info in that article than I had seen before. And

interestingly, each of the cases I uncovered of a bird/MS connection

were among females - the article notes the bird/MS connection seems

to apply only to females.

Rodney.

Gone to check the 'spam' section of my email ; ^ )))

> >

> > > Hi Francesca:

> > >

> > > On the subject of MS ......... a careful study of the lives of

> > > hundreds of MS sufferers done at the University of Montreal,

> > > published about a year ago, found only one thing that seemed to

> be a

> > > common thread. They found that an inordinately large

proportion

> of

> > > families with a case of MS had owned pet birds.