b'MS Focus ActivitiesIs It Age or MS? Not all vision, sleep, temperature, and cognition problems are MS symptoms By Cherie BinnsFifty years ago, we would never have thoughtdisease-modifying therapy. If not, all bets to ask if a new symptom was due to normalare off when it comes to clarifying whether aging or whether it was a new symptom ofwhat is going on is because of aging or MS. multiple sclerosis when physical challengesPersons on a DMT are less likely to have arose. Back then, there was nothing to treattheir MS progress much over time, whereas MS and modify the course of the disease, andindividualsnotusingone willusually average life expectancy for an individual withtransition to progressive forms of MS within MS was around 52 years of age, while theirapproximately 10 years of diagnosis. Smokers healthy counterparts lived to 68. orpeoplewithMSlivinginahousehold What a difference a half a century makeswhere someone smokes progress twice as in todays treatment arena! People with MSrapidly as nonsmokers. Obesity tends to net now, on average, live into their early 70s whilepooreroutcomes.Thatsaid,wewillleave general life expectancy is close to 80 years ofthose characteristics out of the conversation age. Because of this recent evolution in the MSfor now and look at characteristics of normal treatment landscape, we are now needing toaging versus aging with MS. gauge whether symptoms that people areVisionexperiencing in their 50s and 60s are because of the normal aging processes or whether theirOur vision changes as we age because of a MShasbecomeprogressiveandthenewcondition called presbyopia (farsightedness) symptoms may require a tweaking of theirstarting generally between the ages of 45-50. treatment plan.Many individuals will need reading glasses by Thereareanumberofsymptomsthatthen,oramildprescriptionchangein people experience in the process of normaltheir corrective lenses due to aging. Cataracts aging such as dimming or loss of vision, sleep(a clouding of the lens of the eye which causes issues, temperature regulation problems, andvision to dim and colors to lose their vibrancy) cognitive changes. Lets look at these symptomsmay develop starting around our late 50s or separately and see if we cannot help toearly 60s. In some individuals with a family distinguish changes associated with normalhistory of glaucoma (increased pressure in aging from a progression of multiple sclerosis.the eye which can cause compression of the optic nerve and diminish visual clarity) and There are many factors that may contributemacular degeneration (the development of to stability or progression in MS. First andloss of central vision generally in both eyes), foremost is, whether an individual is using athere may be a greater risk of developing one 41 msfocusmagazine.org'