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I am considering moving back to Colorado, I currently live in Texas right now for the past 10 years. But I miss the crisp clean air, I miss the snow, I miss .. trees lol, I miss everything. the problem is I don't seem to do as well in the cold as I do in the heat. yeah yeah I know, most people with MS hate the heat.

I am just afraid if I move back my MS will get pissed off and I will be really sick again. I haven't been feeling great since I had my baby over a year ago. Been real sluggish, I get stiff sometimes and acjes all over. I was symptom free for years. I was dx in Colorado after my 3rd relapse. Moved to texas and I was like I never had MS... until this past year.

I found this

Research Projects Currently under Review
Investigating the Relationship between Altitude and Progression of MS Disease using Geospatial and Statistical Methods
National Multiple Sclerosis Society - pilot study
PI: Benjamin Honigman, MD
The North American Research Committee on Multiple Sclerosis (NARCOMS) established a MS patient registry in 1993 for the U.S., which now contains information on 31,800 MS patients, many of whom have been tracked for over 10 years.

According to NARCOMS, of the 132 active patients in Colorado who have consistently reported their data over the last 4 years or longer, 119 (90%) have had 1 or more relapses. Corresponding numbers for Missouri are 87 with consistent reporting and 78 (86%) with 1 or more relapses and for Maryland 60/78 (77%).

By integrating the NARCOMS database into a geographic information system (GIS) and evaluating with spatial and statistical techniques, we propose to determine: 1) the prevalence of MS in Colorado compared to Missouri and Maryland - low altitude states along the same latitude as Colorado, and 2) to determine whether the progression of MS is different in those individuals living at various altitudes.

http://www.arc-f.org/research_grants_pending.html

Unfortunatly ther link is bad

Geez.... I live in the swamps of South Florida!

As far as cold and heat...It doesnt seem to bother my MS other than extreme heat onsets extreme body fatigue, bad. However, I notice that I cannot tolertate the extreme of either. Below 70 degrees and I am freezing, above 80 degrees and I sweating! Old age? MS? Lazy? I dunno....

I hear ya Bubba.....me too

P.S. High Altitude ...I am in AZ north of Phoenix at an Alt of 5500ft. I believe that atltitude realy only effects those that are not adapted to the climate. Although i was not born here and my AZ residnece is only 4ys proper.

well for me i live in washington state,and im so tired of the weather here I want more than anything to move to a hot state,im not sure how it will affect my body,but my ~soul~ craves summer nights,waking up to the sun shining through my window.Sweating of pounds!! ok lol enough venting,and I have to get off this computer and enjoy the only days of summer i got left!!
And this past winter is when everthing started for me,my toes on my right foot going completly white and numb,I would look around the room and uh nobody looked as cold as my 2 toes,I dunno,lol

Hi mex5

come get some sunshine...you need to be happy where ever you decide to reside (ryhmed). Stress is a big factor w/ms which I'm sure you already know. Speaking of sunshine are you getting enough D3? this might help for the interum.

well peekaboo,now that i see your location your exactly where i wanna be!! Ive been wanting to move down to arizona for a while now!!So i had all these plans and 1 by 1 they fizzled but im a veary determined person and i will make it there,im tired of rain,rain,rain,lol,I want sun,sun,oh sun!!At the beginning of this year all of this stuff started happening to me!Then my husbands job changed and so on.So what part of the state r u located.

me_x_5 wrote: And this past winter is when everthing started for me,my toes on my right foot going completly white and numb

That sort of sounds like it might be related to Raynaud's syndrome. I used to get that in my fingers. However, I haven't had a reoccurrence of it since I started taking a combined calcium, magnesium, zinc, and vitamin D3 supplement. The possibility of Raynaud's might be something for you to look into as it could be treatable.

NHE

Me_x_5

I live in Prescott which is in the northern half of AZ. There is the Prescott Nat's forest surrounding the town along w/ mountains not rocky mt sized. We get 4 seasons here. It can snow but it melts w/in a day or so. AZ also has its rainy season called "Monsoon" . Definition of Monsoon is change of winds. I love living here. Jobs in AZ are not easy to get like most of the US. That could be the biggest stumbling block to moving here.

well thanks someday you may see me there,I would defeintly get everything lined up first,and take a trip to a town i choose and checked it out,lol
yes,NHE,I did relize what was happening to me when it started,and that was only the first part,then my right leg and foot would go numb,then my right arm,then my calf would feel like there was a rod in it,then stabbing and burning of my leg,and my drooping right eye,and OH GOD,why me!!~Raynaud's~
So im not sure at all my Raynaud's happened to me cause that was honestly the first time my body reacted like that to the cold!!I kinda just wish this nightmare would be over!!I just want a doctor to say yes you have this so,cause I dont have patients for guessing games,I feel like Im now living on another plain of life were little things are so TINY now and there is a big picture now,so if I take anything away from this is,look at the bigger picture in your life,stop and smell the roses,lol,ok gotta go enjoy the sun again!!Venting feels good ,lol,

My husband and I have wondered about the altitude thing from time to time. We travel frequently to visit our family, who are spread out all over everywhere. And the plane trips seems to set off my husband's MS sometimes. When we travel, we're always very careful about trying to reduce stress, eat right, get enough rest, yadda yadda. He actually handles long car rides better, so we're slowly turning into road trippers.

We were wondering whether the air pressure or reduced oxygen content on the planes were bothering him. Both those issues would also come up just with regular elevation, like in Colorado. Interesting.
--Mamacita

hi mama, i was looking up something unrelated on selenium and infection, something in an abstract switched me on to selenium and hypoxia, and unexpectedly i came across this abstract on selenium, hypoxia, and high altitude:

At high altitudes, the reactive oxygen species are continuously generated as a consequence of low oxygen partial pressure (hypoxia), which causes tissue damage. The body's defence system to combat the oxidative stress (e.g., anti-oxidant enzymes, free radical scavengers such as vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene, reduced glutathione and minerals such as selenium, etc.) may diminish. In the present study, the antioxidant effect of selenium (Se) in reducing the hypoxia-induced oxidative stress was evaluated by exposing male albino rats to hypoxic stress in a decompression chamber. Exposure to hypoxia resulted in an increase in malondialdehyde (MDA) levels in plasma and tissues and a concurrent decrease in blood glutathione (GSH), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), plasma protein and plasma selenium content when compared with controls. Haemoglobin concentration (Hb%), red blood corpuscles (RBC) and white blood corpuscles (WBC) count were also increased in the hypoxia-exposed group. Selenium supplementation to animals reversed the trend. There was a significant decrease (P < 0.001) in MDA and subsequent increase in plasma and tissue GSH levels. Similarly the blood and tissue GPx and plasma protein also increased significantly in the Se supplemented animals compared with control animals. The Hb%, RBC and WBC counts showed no significant difference between Se-fed and control rats. These results suggest that selenium may help in reducing the lipid peroxidation during hypoxia.

Very neat. Maybe we'll load up my husband with shrimp and mushrooms when he flies. See if it helps.
--Mamacita

brazil nuts!!!

2-3 per day (~8-12g) gets you into the 100 to 200 mcg ballpark. they are chock full.

check out the stats for a 1c serving:
1c = 133 g and one nut is about 4g so 1 serving is 33 nuts which gives you 2550mcg Selenium (3643% of daily value)

compare italian brown/crimini mushrooms (raw)
1 piece whole (20g)
5.2 mcg Selenium (7% of daily value)

neat study:
Design: A randomized controlled trial was conducted with 59 New Zealand adults. Participants consumed 2 Brazil nuts thought to provide 100 µg Se, 100 µg Se as selenomethionine, or placebo daily for 12 wk. Actual intake from nuts averaged 53 µg Se/d (possible range: 20–84 µg Se). Plasma selenium and plasma and whole blood glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities were measured at baseline and at 2, 4, 8, and 12 wk, and effects of treatments were compared.
Results: Plasma selenium increased by 64.2%, 61.0%, and 7.6%; plasma GPx by 8.3%, 3.4%, and –1.2%; and whole blood GPx by 13.2%, 5.3%, and 1.9% in the Brazil nut, selenomethionine, and placebo groups, respectively. Change over time at 12 wk in plasma selenium (P < 0.0001 for both groups) and plasma GPx activity in the Brazil nut (P < 0.001) and selenomethionine (P = 0.014) groups differed significantly from the placebo group but not from each other. The change in whole blood GPx activity was greater in the Brazil nut group than in the placebo (P = 0.002) and selenomethionine (P = 0.032) groups.
Conclusion: Consumption of 2 Brazil nuts daily is as effective for increasing selenium status and enhancing GPx activity as 100 µg Se as selenomethionine. Inclusion of this high-selenium food in the diet could avoid the need for fortification or supplements to improve the selenium status of New Zealanders.

too bad i loathe brazil nuts... :S lol!