Recently, mainstream media has been flooded with reports speculating on what role, if any, vitamin D may play in reducing the severity of COVID-19 infection. There have been numerous studies for and against the effects of vitamin D levels in bolstering our immune system.
Observational studies have compared outcomes from various countries to suggest inverse links between vitamin D levels and the severity of COVID-19 responses. Some studies have also correlated a reduced mortality rate during the pandemic with vitamin D levels and have suggested the effect of the vitamin on the immune response to the infection.
Vitamin D is produced in the skin from UVB (ultraviolet B rays) sunlight exposure and is transported to the liver and then the kidney where it is changed into an active hormone that increases calcium transport from food in the gut and ensures calcium is adequate to keep the skeleton strong and free of osteoporosis. Vitamin D is also known to support the immune system through a number of immune pathways involved in fighting coronavirus. Many recent studies have confirmed the pivotal role of vitamin D in viral infections.
“These studies are not without their statistical flaws, so cannot yet be regarded as certain, but they are not quackery like a lot of the stuff coming out of the supplements industry: they come from reputable medical scientists,” reports The Spectator in the UK.
One such study has shown, through observed data, that countries at lower latitude and typically sunny countries, such as Spain and northern Italy, had surprisingly low concentrations of vitamin D and high rates of vitamin D deficiency. As we know, these countries also experienced the highest infection and death rates in Europe.
This study claims that countries in the northern latitude—Norway, Finland and Sweden, have higher vitamin D levels, despite less UVB sunlight exposure, because supplementation and fortification of foods is more common. These Nordic countries have lower COVID-19 infection and death rates. The correlation between low vitamin D levels and death from COVID-19 is shown to be statistically significant.
The authors of this study, which is published in Irish Medical Journal, propose that optimising vitamin D levels, while certainly beneficial for bone and muscle health, is also likely to reduce serious COVID-19 complications. This may be because vitamin D is important in regulation and suppression of the inflammatory cytokine response which causes the severe consequences of COVID-19 and ‘acute respiratory distress syndrome’ associated with ventilation and death.
Prof Rose Anne Kenny, one of the authors of this study, has said, "In England, Scotland and Wales, public health bodies have revised recommendations since the COVID-19 outbreak. Recommendations now state that all adults should take at least 400 IU vitamin D daily. Whereas there are currently no results from randomised controlled trials to conclusively prove that vitamin D beneficially affects COVID-19 outcomes, there is strong circumstantial evidence of associations between vitamin D and the severity of COVID-19 responses, including death."
This team of researchers has been calling on the Irish government to update guidelines urgentlyy to encourage all adults to take supplements during the COVID-19 crisis.
But many scientists and researchers refute these findings, since they are purely based on observational data and not on controlled laboratory tests. Robust data supporting a role of vitamin D in prevention of COVID-19, or as any kind of ‘therapy’ for the infection, is currently lacking. “There’s no randomised controlled trial for sure, and that’s the gold standard,” said Dr Clifford Rosen, senior scientist at Maine Medical Center’s Research Institute, “and the observational data are so confounded, it’s difficult to know.”
While some researchers and clinicians believe people should get tested to see if they have adequate vitamin D levels during this pandemic — in particular frontline healthcare workers — most doctors say the best way to ensure that people have adequate levels of vitamin D during COVID-19 is to simply take supplements at currently recommended levels.
Matt Ridley from The Spectator in UK reports that, “results are coming in from various settings and the main message seems to be that vitamin D deficiency may or may not help to prevent you catching the virus, but it does affect whether you get very ill from it.” So, while it is is not definite whether vitamin D can help prevent a coronavirus infection, it is certain that it does assist in reducing the possibility of any serious complications.
In any case, readers should be prudent and not rely solely on vitamin D to protect themselves from COVID-19, as the research in this regard is still in its infancy. Moreover, even if it were to have a positive impact, vitamin D still will not be as effective as social distancing, good hygiene and proper disinfection of objects in preventing an infection.
Dont even bother to research the following:
https://www.preprints.org/manuscript/202003.0235/v1?fbclid=IwAR1Dv6q5-eS2sABb8Imnxbb-rw-l9UfuMmJ45mU6w3QIg93XxxeOtvyjBss
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AxdE7cSCfbw&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR0W-uJ77kENAfQ1n06bbFEdWlZiAnPgmZrXcus2x0sDSVYzsLDONVjth10
https://www.amymyersmd.com/2016/06/vitamin-d/