Vitamin D Deficiency Blog

Boosting Vitamin D Can Do a Heart Good

Posted 5 days ago by Drugs.com

MONDAY, March 15 – New research suggests that extra vitamin D could make a major difference in heart disease risk among people who have low levels of the nutrient.

Researchers from the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute in Murray, Utah, report in two new studies that vitamin D supplementation may reduce the risk of other chronic diseases, too.

"Vitamin D replacement therapy has long been associated with reducing the risk of fractures and diseases of the bone," study author Dr. J. Brent Muhlestein, director of cardiovascular research, said in a center news release. "But our findings show that vitamin D could have far greater implications in the treatment and reduction of cardiovascular disease and other chronic conditions than we previously thought." Read more...

Related support groups: Calciferol, D 1000 IU, D3-5, D3-50, Delta D3, Drisdol, Vitamin D, Vitamin D3, Vitamin D Deficiency, Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, Cholecalciferol, Ergocalciferol, Vitamin D Insufficiency

Lower Vitamin D Levels in Blacks May Up Heart Risks

Posted 10 weeks ago by Drugs.com

WEDNESDAY, Jan. 6 – New research indicates that the darker skin of blacks may increase their risk of heart disease and stroke because it reduces production of vitamin D, which is made during exposure to sunlight.

Several studies have associated low levels of vitamin D with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and "the biggest source of vitamin D levels is sunlight," said Dr. Kevin Fiscella, a professor of family medicine and community and preventive medicine at the University of Rochester, and co-author of a paper in the January/February issue of the Annals of Family Medicine. "People with dark skin who live at higher latitudes, where the intensity of sunlight is less, may be at greater risk." Read more...

Related support groups: Vitamin D Deficiency, Vitamin D Insufficiency

Low Vitamin D Levels May Initiate Cancer Development

Posted 3+ months ago by Drugs.com

FRIDAY, May 22 – Low levels of vitamin D may contribute to cancer development, U.S. researchers have found.

"The first event in cancer is loss of communication among cells due to, among other things, low vitamin D and calcium levels," study leader Cedric Garland, an epidemiologist at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego, said in a university news release.

Garland and colleagues developed a scientific model that suggests "this loss may play a key role in cancer by disrupting the communication between cells that is essential to healthy cell turnover, allowing more aggressive cancer cells to take over." Read more...

Related support groups: Vitamin D Deficiency

Vitamin D May Help Keep Aging at Bay

Posted 3+ months ago by Drugs.com

FRIDAY, May 22 – High levels of vitamin D might help keep the brain healthy as people age, new research suggests.

For the study, which included more than 3,000 European men aged 40 to 79, the researchers assessed the men's memory and how quickly they processed information. They also examined other factors that affect mental agility, such as physical activity levels and mood. Blood samples were taken to measure the men's circulating levels of vitamin D, which the body produces through exposure to sunlight and obtains through dietary sources. Read more...

Related support groups: Calciferol, Vitamin D Deficiency

Many Americans Fall Short on Their Vitamin D

Posted 3+ months ago by Drugs.com

MONDAY, March 23 – Over the course of two decades, vitamin D levels have dramatically decreased among Americans, a new study finds.

Low levels of vitamin D have been associated with rickets in children and lower bone mineral density in adults. Recent research has also linked insufficient vitamin D to cancer, heart disease, infection and poorer health overall. Optimal levels range from 30 nanograms per milliliter to 40 nanograms per milliliter, the researchers said. Read more...

Related support groups: Vitamin D Deficiency

Half of Black Teens May Be Vitamin D Deficient

Posted 3+ months ago by Drugs.com

WEDNESDAY, March 4 – Many teens today, especially black teens, aren't getting enough of vitamin D, the so-called sunshine vitamin that is essential for cells to function, say researchers from Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City.

Vitamin D deficiency has been linked to many chronic diseases, including heart disease, diabetes, immune system problems and inflammatory diseases.

"There is evidence that the levels of vitamin D we have been using in the past may have been too low," said lead researcher Dr. Sandy Saintonge, a fellow in general preventive medicine at Weill Cornell. Read more...

Related support groups: Vitamin D Deficiency