Why Vitamin D Supplementation is Good for My Overall Health

As we are immersed into the cold, blistering winter season, the hype regarding Vitamin D deficiency arises. According to Sizar O, Khare S, Goyal A, et al. in their July 2020 article, Vitamin D Deficiency, “about 1 billion people worldwide have vitamin D deficiency, while 50% of the population has vitamin D insufficiency.” Well, that’s hard to ignore!

Nerd alert! This one is full of tons of studies, folks, but take the time to read this. Remember, knowledge is POWER.

You are My Sunshine

What is vitamin D and how does it work?

Vitamin D (cholecalciferol), is normally synthesized in the skin under the influence of sunlight. It also can be ingested from some fish and plant sources, in this case, referenced as ergocalciferol. From there, it travels to the liver where it is converted to 25-hydroxyvitamin D (calcidiol, 25[OH]D). This is what primarily circulates in our body and what we measure for deficiency. The journey doesn’t stop there! Calcidiol then moseys its way to the kidney, where it is converted to 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (calcitriol), which is the most active form.  Vitamin D deficiency can therefore occur as a result of decreased intake or absorption, limited exposure to the sun, increased breakdown in the liver due to certain medications, or decreased synthesis within the liver or kidney.

Why Things Aren’t Always D-Lightful

Why you likely are deficient, you might ask?

Well, most of us today live busy, hectic lives. With this truth, it’s evident that taking time for outdoor activities can be difficult. Maybe you do find yourself soaking in the rays on occasion. However, we now are aware of sun exposure and increased risk for skin cancer development. Many of us choose to wear sunscreen given this concern. SPF sunscreen blocks 90+% of UVB rays, thus limiting the amount of vitamin D that we can manufacture. Now, I’m not discouraging use of SPF sunscreen because it is vital to protect our skin, but I want people to gain an understanding of why vitamin D deficiency is so prevalent. Now, let us factor in that we see virtually no sunlight from September to March in our geographic location, and we can appreciate what a problem we have on our hands when it comes to vitamin D deficiency.

How Not Being Nutritious, Can Be Vicious

What does this amazing vitamin do? There are a many functions in the body that Vitamin D is critical for. Vitamin D works together with more than 30 different tissues in the body and influences more than 1,000 genes (Low Dog, 2016).

Vitamin D is, of course, well known for its benefits on bone health as it works together with parathyroid hormone to control the levels of calcium and phosphorus in the body, which are required for strong bones, muscular contraction, and for our nerve signals to work appropriately. There is SO much more to consider, however. Vitamin D is associated with benefits in managing depression, upper respiratory tract infections, and heart disease!

Link to Depression

Yes, those awful wintery blues are a real thing, and many studies are linking that to vitamin D deficiency.

In his 2017 review article, Alessandro Cuomo, M.D performed a literature review to investigate the relationship between low vitamin D concentration and depression. Here, he recognizes a multitude of studies validating the relationship between vitamin D deficiency and depression, including those related to seasonal affective disorder. For example, Cuomo notes that in a prospective RCT of 15 individuals with the seasonal affective disorder, all people who received vitamin D supplementation improved in all outcome measures. He also reports that in a randomized, double-blind study, 44 healthy individuals receiving vitamin D3 supplementation for five days during late winter self-reported a significantly enhanced positive affect, and there was some evidence it reduced negative affect.  He too notes studies validating the connection between vitamin D deficiency and postpartum depression, as well as depression in children and the elderly population.

While there still is speculation and controversy about the cause vs. effect, protocols for testing and supplementation, the vast majority of studies provide enough data to conclude an association between depression and vitamin d deficiency. Although more research is needed, we should take this knowledge to promote screening for and treating vitamin D deficiency in individuals with depression. We live in a world burdened with mental health issues, so why wouldn’t we perform simple, cost-effective methods to improve depression outcome!

Link to Upper Respiratory Tract Infections

As we grapple with this pandemic, we strive to find ways to reduce the risk of infection. Before COVID, many studies have validated that vitamin D increases our resistance to infections of a bacterial and viral nature that particularly impact our respiratory tract. Vitamin D works through 3 mechanisms to help reduce infections. It helps to create a physical barrier on our cells, where many viruses and microorganisms tend to disrupt, it helps with innate cellular immunity by recruiting other peptide warriors that kill invading pathogens, and helps with adaptive immunity by limiting the cytokine storm that our innate immune system generates (this is the badness that we see with COVID).

According to Grant et. al in his 2020 article, he reviews data that supports the role of higher vitamin D concentrations in reducing risk of infection and death from acute respiratory tract infections, particularly influenza, pneumonia, and COVID. He notes, for example, an observational study conducted in Connecticut on 198 healthy adults in the fall and winter of 2009–2010 show that only 17% of people who maintained perceived optimal vitamin D levels throughout the study developed acute respiratory tract infections, whereas 45% of those with lower values did. Those with optimal levels also had a significant twofold reduction in risk of developing infections and had a marked reduction in the percentage of days ill.

Well, what about COVID?

A very recent study by Castillo et. all in October of 2020 demonstrated that administration of vitamin D, significantly reduced the need for ICU treatment of patients requiring hospitalization due to proven COVID-19. Of 50 patients treated, one required admission to the ICU (2%), while of 26 untreated patients, 13 required admission (50 %). That is pretty remarkable!

Link to Heart Health

Did you know that your heart contains Vitamin D receptors? Vitamin D is needed for healthy heart functioning and blood pressure maintenance. In 2013, a review of 21 studies in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition discovered that vitamin D supplementation is protective against heart failure. Other studies, such as the Health Professional Follow-Up Study, revealed a link to vitamin D deficiency and increased cardiac events. This study showed that those with vitamin D deficiency were twice as likely to have a heart attack as men with adequate levels. With heart disease being the leading cause of death in the US, this is all certainly something to take note of.

Don’t Get Down With This Common Deficiency

Overall, evidence is compelling to consider supplementation with Vitamin D, especially if you suffer from depression and frequent upper respiratory tract infections. Talk to your doctor, do your research, and take hold of your wellness! Now more than ever we need to put our health first!