[ad_1]
- Researchers in Spain have provided an intriguing update on the coronavirus, in the form of a study that found a high probability that vitamin D deficiencies could explain why so many people were hospitalized with the coronavirus there during a particular time period.
- However, the research did not establish a link between vitamin deficiency and the severity of the coronavirus case.
- More research is still needed to determine the precise nature of the interaction between vitamin D and the COVID-19 coronavirus.
Slowly but surely, scientists and researchers are beginning to understand at least some of the more mysterious aspects of the COVID-19 coronavirus, such as why some people develop such a severe infection, while the virus seems not to see other people for full.
One of the most recent coronavirus updates that we have comes in the form of a new study by researchers in Spain, specifically from the Marqués de Valdecilla University Hospital in Santander, which analyzed patients over a period of time at the beginning of the pandemic to look for similarities. Interestingly, more than 80% of a group of 216 COVID-19 patients admitted to the hospital between March 10 and March 31 were found to have a vitamin D deficiency.
Vitamin D, a hormone produced by the kidneys, has an impact on the functioning of the body’s immune system and also controls the concentration of calcium in the blood. The authors of this study decided to take a closer look at the levels of the nutrient in these patients as a result of the growing assumption that it appears to influence whether or not a person develops a COVID-19 infection.
Among the study findings, 82% of patients with a coronavirus infection severe enough to be transferred to the hospital were found to be deficient in vitamin D. Additionally, vitamin D levels were found in these coronavirus patients they were “especially lower” in men compared to women.
Dr. José Hernández, co-author of the study and associate professor of neurophysiology at the University of Cantabria in Spain, said that there are a variety of comorbidities, as well as general lifestyle choices that may explain why men seem to have more of the problem. here than women. In an email to a Canadian media outlet, Hernández added that: “There is extensive evidence in the literature that supports the beneficial effect of vitamin D on the immune system, especially with regard to protection against infections, including infections. viral “. Additionally, vitamin D deficiency has also been linked to problems such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease.
An important conclusion that researchers in Spain could not draw from these findings has to do with the severity of a COVID-19 infection. In other words, while the data seemed to suggest that vitamin D deficiencies could explain an increase in coronavirus-related hospitalizations, no correlation was found between vitamin level and disease severity.
Andy is a Memphis reporter who also contributes to outlets like Fast Company and The Guardian. When he’s not writing about technology, he can be found hunched over protectively over his burgeoning vinyl collection, as well as minding his whovianism and choking on a variety of TV shows he probably doesn’t like.
[ad_2]
