Ever wondered what warm weather can do to the thinking skills of a patient suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS)? Well, a groundbreaking study claims that warmer days of the year make it difficult for MS patients to learn, remember or process information. The study findings link warm weather with impairment in cognition or thinking skills.
At the time of the study, experts thoroughly assessed 40 MS patients and 40 without the ailment. All the participants underwent tests to measure learning, memory and the speed at which information is processed. After the tests, volunteers were also subjected to brain scans. Authors kept a tab on the daily temperature of the days the tests were taken. MS patients seemingly scored 70 percent better on thinking tests during cooler days than the warmer days of the year.
No such correlation appeared between thinking test scores and temperature of those without MS. It is predicted that the study findings can guide MS patients to make life decisions and their doctors with clinical treatment. Victoria Leavitt, PhD, with the Kessler Foundation in West Orange, New Jersey, study author and colleagues believe that warm weather has a strong connection with MS, because it was previously linked with elevation in disease activity and lesions.
The study was presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 63rd Annual Meeting in Honolulu April 9 to April 16, 2011.