Study: Multiple Sclerosis Risk May Drop by 50% After First Pregnancy

By Brenda Goodman, MA WebMD Health News

Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

March 7, 2012 -- Pregnancy appears to play a strong role in whether or not a woman may develop the autoimmune disease multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a new study.

The study involved more than 800 women between the ages of 18 and 60. Nearly 300 of them had experienced a first episode of MS symptoms. The other women were healthy and were included for comparison.

Women in the study with at least one child had about half the risk of early MS symptoms compared to women without children. And that risk appeared to drop with each additional child. Women with three children had a 75% lower risk of early MS symptoms compared to women without children. In women with five or more children, risk of early symptoms was slashed by 94%.

Those benefits remained even after researchers accounted for other factors associated with the likelihood of developing MS, like level of education, smoking, skin damage and sun exposure, and certain susceptibility genes.

Researchers say they're pretty sure that it is something about pregnancy -- rather than being a parent or raising children -- that's protective, because they saw no difference in men.

The study is published in the journal Neurology.

Although it is already known that a woman with MS may see a decrease in her symptoms while pregnant, other large studies have not seen an association between pregnancies and MS. But researchers think that may have something to do with when women were included in the studies.

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Past Pregnancies May Protect Against MS