Pandemic of the Vitamin D Deficient
Is the COVID-19 pandemic actually a pandemic of the vitamin D deficient? A new systematic review and meta-analysis strongly suggests that it is.
The meta-analysis and systematic review included 14 studies with 91,120 people. It found that people who are vitamin D deficient are at higher risk of COVID-19 infection as compared to people who are vitamin D sufficient.
Several studies also found that low vitamin D is associated with more severe disease, more hospitalization, more admissions to ICU and more critical cases. Perhaps most importantly, studies also found that the odds of death were higher in people with insufficient vitamin D.
On the positive side, studies found that improving vitamin D status both in the general population and in hospitalized patients reduced both severity and death. They found that supplementing vitamin D was beneficial for treating COVID and for preventing more severe symptoms. Intriguingly, they also found that vitamin D supplementation reduced the virus in the upper respiratory tract, making the person less infectious.
The individual studies, then, suggest that vitamin D prevents and treats infection, reduces severity, hospitalization, admission to ICU, prevents transmission and reduces deaths.
When the studies were all put together, vitamin D deficiency emerged as a remarkable prevention for COVID: vitamin D deficiency was associated with an 80% increased risk of COVID. To make the point clear, the researchers state that “those individuals with an insufficient level of Vitamin D are 80% more likely to acquire COVID-19 infection as compared to those who have a normal level of Vitamin D.”
The review also found that improving vitamin D status in the general population could reduce the risk of COVID infection.
So, vitamin D reduces the risk of infection by 80%. It reduces the risk of transmission and the risk of severe infection and hospital and ICU admission. It also reduces the risk of death. A number of studies have shown that having sufficient levels of vitamin D reduces the risk of death by 100% even in hospitalized people with severe acute respiratory infection (J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol 2020 Oct;203:105751; Am J Clin Pathol 2021;15(3):381-8).
Compare that to anything out there! Then ask why we’re not all being told to take vitamin D.
Front Public Health. 2021; 9: 624559
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>having sufficient levels of vitamin D reduces the risk of death by 100% even in hospitalized people with severe acute respiratory infection (J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol 2020 Oct;203:105751; Am J Clin Pathol 2021;15(3):381-8).
Compare that to anything out there! Then ask why we’re not all being told to take vitamin D.
Front Public Health. 2021; 9: 624559
For the latest research to keep you and your family healthy, get The Natural Path delivered to your inbox each month for only $29.99 a year: Subscribe!
For comprehensive help with your health, make an appointment to see Linda Woolven now. Linda’s clinic is now open for virtual appointments.
The Natural Path is intended for educational purposes only and is in no way intended for self-diagnosis or self-treatment. For health problems, consult a qualified health practitioner for a comprehensive program.
Ask your health food store for The Natural Path Newsletter