Vitamin D deficiency could be linked to higher risk of serious coronavirus infections
Vitamin D deficiency could be linked to a higher risk of serious coronavirus infections
- Two studies based on data from more than 20 countries have found that vitamin D deficiency may be associated with more severe cases of Covid-19 disease.
- Both studies found that countries with lower average vitamin D levels had higher rates of severe Covid-19 disease and death than countries with higher levels of the nutrient.
- More research is needed to better understand these relationships, but these results may help explain why some people are more susceptible to complications from Covid-19 disease than others.
If you're looking for ways to protect yourself from the coronavirus, new research suggests that a higher intake of vitamin D could help.
Two new studies have linked vitamin D deficiency to a higher risk of coronavirus and suggest that insufficient intake of this nutrient could mean a higher risk of serious complications from coronavirus infection.
Vitamin D deficiency could lead to immune system complications and worsen coronavirus disease, study suggests
In a study published on April 30 (1), a team of scientists from Northwestern University looked at data on coronavirus cases from 10 countries including China, Iran, Germany, Italy and the US. They compared this data with the vitamin D levels of the population in these countries before the outbreak of the pandemic.
They found a strong correlation between vitamin D deficiency and a complication known as a cytokine storm, which occurs when the immune system overreacts, as well as a correlation between vitamin D deficiency and mortality rates.
"A cytokine storm can seriously damage the lungs and lead to acute respiratory distress syndrome and death," said Ali Daneshkhah, who led the study, in a press release (2). "This seems to be what is responsible for the death of the majority of COVID-19 patients - and not the destruction of the lungs by the virus itself. It is the complications of the misdirected immune system response."
Countries where residents have adequate vitamin D levels cope far better with the virus
Another study also found a link between higher vitamin D levels and fewer Covid-19 cases and deaths.
In the study, which was published in the journal Aging Clinical and Experimental Research (3), scientists from the UK found that out of 20 European countries, those with higher average vitamin D levels had fewer coronavirus cases and lower mortality rates.
Italy and Spain, for example, had higher mortality rates than other countries in the study and both countries also had below-average vitamin D levels. Northern European countries such as Finland, Denmark and Sweden had above-average vitamin D levels and lower rates of coronavirus disease and death.
The researchers noted that the results of this study were limited by the fact that the extent of testing and other interventions in each country were not taken into account.
Further research is needed to understand exactly how vitamin D can affect coronavirus disease
The second study did not investigate whether an increase in vitamin D levels can lead to a more positive course of coronavirus disease, but this is a prospect that scientists are interested in exploring further.
"Vitamin D has been shown to protect against acute respiratory infections, and older adults, who are the group most likely to be vitamin D deficient, are also the most likely to develop serious Covid-19 disease," said Lee Smith, one of the authors of the study, in a press release (4).
The results of the Northwestern study also suggest that vitamin D may help explain why some people are more susceptible to Covid-19. Older people, for example, have a higher risk of serious Covid-19 disease and are also more likely to suffer from vitamin D deficiency. Children, on the other hand, are less susceptible to severe Covid-19 disease, partly because their immune systems are less likely to overreact and cause complications such as a cytokine storm.
However, no vitamin is a panacea and vitamin D is no exception. If you already get enough vitamin D from the sun, food or other sources, more vitamin D will not help. Extreme overdoses can even have negative side effects. "While I think it's important to realize that vitamin D deficiency could play a role in mortality, it's important to remember that while vitamin D cannot prevent infection, it can reduce complications and lower the risk of fatal disease in people who are sick with this virus," said Vadim Backman, a professor of biomedical sciences at Northwestern University.References:
- https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.04.08.20058578v3
- https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/05/200507121353.htm
- https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40520-020-01570-8
- https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/05/200507131012.htm
By Gabby Landsverk
Source: https://www.insider.com/vitamin-d-deficiency-may-be-linked-more-severe-coronavirus-2020-5