the highest exposure to UV-B rays were 45 percent less likely to develop MS than those who lived in regions with the lowest UV-B exposure, the study found.
Sun exposure in youth was key: Women who lived in regions with the highest levels of UV-B exposure between the ages of 5 and 15 were 51 percent less likely to develop MS than those with the lowest UV-B exposure between ages 5 and 15, Tremlett’s group found.
More time spent outdoors in summer in youth was similarly tied to lower MS rates decades later, the researchers reported in Neurology.
“Our research showed that those who did develop MS also had reduced sun or outdoor exposure later in life, in both summer and winter, which may have health consequences,” Tremlett said in a journal news release.
Still, exposure to the sun’s UV rays has a big downside, too: skin cancer. The American Cancer Society has long warned that tanning and burning, especially, are a prime cause of potentially deadly forms of the disease, such as melanoma. Regarding the MS study, one expert said its findings are in tune with prior research.
“While geographic location during adolescence was