Multiple sclerosis (MS) is one of those brain diseases that can affect the entire life of the patient by disabling the brain and central nervous system. Unfortunately, we do not yet know what causes it and it is considered an autoimmune disease because the body’s immune system is the attacker of its own tissues.
However, scientists have managed to identify an array of risk factors that could potentially increase the chance of a person to get it. It usually affects people between 16 and 55, seems to be influenced by family history, and women seem to be two to three times more likely to develop it.
Furthermore, white people of particularly Northern European descent have the highest risk of developing this disease while those of Asian, Native American, and African descent seem to be on the low pole. MS is also far more common in countries where the climate is stable and temperate.