Vitamin D deficiency may be related to severe cases of coronavirus

• Vitamin D deficiency may be linked to more severe cases of the coronavirus, according to two studies based on data from more than 20 different countries.
• The researchers in both studies found that countries where people had low vitamin D levels had a higher rate of severe cases of COVID-19 death than countries where people had adequate amounts of the nutrient.
• More research is needed, but this finding could help explain why some people are more vulnerable to complications from the virus than others.
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If you’re looking for ways to protect yourself against the coronavirus, new research suggests that getting plenty of vitamin D may help.

Two new studies have linked vitamin D deficiency with coronavirus risks, suggesting that not having enough nutrient may increase the likelihood that people will experience serious complications if they become infected.

Lack of vitamin D could lead to immune system complications, making the virus worse if you get sick, study says

In a study published April 30 as a preprint, a research team led by Northwestern University analyzed data on coronavirus cases in 10 countries, including China, Iran, Germany, Italy, and the US. USA They compared this to data on vitamin D levels among the population of those countries before the pandemic.

They found a strong correlation between vitamin D deficiency and severe COVID-19.

The study also found a strong correlation between vitamin D deficiency and a complication known as cytokine storm, which occurs when the immune system goes into overdrive, worsening COVID-19 and potentially damaging the respiratory system.

“The cytokine storm can severely damage the lungs and lead to acute respiratory distress syndrome and death of patients,” Ali Daneshkhah, a postdoctoral research fellow at Northwestern and lead author of the study, said in a news release. “This is what seems to kill most COVID-19 patients, not destruction of the lungs by the virus itself. They are the complications of the immune-driven fire.”

Countries where people get enough vitamin D may have better results against the virus

Another study also found that higher levels of vitamin D may be related to better coronavirus outcomes.

In the study, published May 6 in Aging Clinical and Experimental Research, researchers from the United Kingdom found that countries with a higher average level of vitamin D had fewer cases of coronavirus and a lower death rate from the virus. . They based their study on data from 20 European countries.

Italy and Spain, for example, had a higher mortality rate than other countries in the study, and both had a significantly lower average level of vitamin D.

Northern European countries such as Finland, Norway, Denmark and Sweden, by contrast, had the highest average levels of vitamin D among the population and saw a lower rate of cases and deaths from the coronavirus.

The researchers noted that this study was limited because it did not take into account the level of evidence and other interventions in each country.

More research is needed to understand exactly how vitamin D influences coronavirus outcomes.

The second study did not examine whether increased vitamin D levels could lead to better outcomes for coronavirus patients. But it is a possibility that researchers are interested in exploring further.

“Vitamin D has been shown to protect against acute respiratory infections, and older adults, the group most deficient in vitamin D, are also the most severely affected by COVID-19,” Smith said in a press release.

The Northwestern study results also suggest that vitamin D may explain why some patients, such as the elderly, are more vulnerable to COVID-19, as they are also more likely to be deficient in vitamin D. Children, on the other hand They may be less susceptible to severe cases, in part because your immune system may be less likely to overreact to the virus and cause complications like a cytokine storm.

But no vitamin is a panacea, and this is no exception. If you’re already getting an adequate amount of vitamin D, from sunlight, food, or other sources, adding more won’t help. In fact, getting too much vitamin D can have negative side effects.

“While I think it’s important for people to know that vitamin D deficiency could play a role in mortality, we don’t need to push vitamin D at all,” said Vadim Backman, professor of biomedical engineering at Northwestern University and principal investigator. The study said in a press release. “It will not prevent a patient from contracting the virus, but it can reduce complications and prevent the death of infected people.”

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