Does vitamin D help with the coronavirus? – Medicines

This is indisputable: vitamin D plays an important role in almost every process in the human body. However, does the vitamin also help with COVID-19? And does it make sense to take it preventively?

This is indisputable: vitamin D plays an important role in almost every process in the human body. When its content in a milliliter of blood falls below 12 nanograms, it is said to be very deficient. And it leads to bone problems: Babies or young children can develop rickets and adults can develop osteomalacia. However, this is the end of medical unanimity on the issue, Deutsche Welle reported.

How much vitamin D does a person need? From what moment do we speak of lack? There are no clear answers to these questions. However, the fact is that vitamin D is becoming increasingly popular.

Vitamin D deficiency is critical in people infected with COVID-19

What does vitamin D help with?

Vitamin D is mentioned more and more frequently not only in pseudoscientific literature, but also in scientific publications. In addition to its contribution to bone strength, there has been a lot of talk lately about its positive effect on some cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, and various types of cancer.

The level of vitamin D in the body is determined mainly by sunlight. If enough ultraviolet rays reach the skin, the body can only produce vitamin D. Food provides only 10% to 20% of the necessary amounts of this vitamin. However, the vitamin D thus obtained is not yet biologically active in the human body. Additional metabolic processes are needed before the biologically active form of the vitamin is formed in the kidneys, called calcitriol, from where it enters the blood.

Calcitriol supports a number of important processes in the human body, including the production of insulin, the formation of red blood cells, the functioning of the immune system, and the suppression of the growth of tumor cells.

Does vitamin D also help against COVID-19?

This year, several studies have concluded that there is a link between vitamin D deficiency and the more severe course of COVID-19 disease. For example, according to a team of scientists from Santander, Spain, led by José Hernández, found that 80% of hospitalized patients with COVID-19 had vitamin D deficiency.

In June, scientists at the University of Hohenheim published an analysis that found a link between a number of non-communicable diseases, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and metabolic syndrome – that is, low vitamin D content in the body.

“These comorbidities, combined with the low levels of vitamin D in the body that are often seen, increase the risk of a more severe course of COVID-19,” the document said. “This statement is completely true,” said Martin Fasnacht, head of endocrinology at Würzburg University Hospital, who said the conclusion was based solely on observations.

Without denying its important role for humans, he is quite critical of the exaggeration of the possibilities of vitamin D. “So far no study has shown the healing properties attributed to it,” said the doctor. It is currently being investigated whether vitamin D helps in the treatment of COVID-19.

“However, I don’t think this is confirmed. But I may be wrong,” Fastnacht said.

In October 2020, The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology published the results of a new study, according to which the preventive intake of vitamin D can significantly reduce the course of Kovid-19.