The role of vitamin D was actually insignificant
In the first months since the beginning of the pandemic, several studies appeared at once, indicating that the higher a person’s vitamin D level, the less likely they are to become infected with SARS-CoV-2 or become seriously ill. This gave a new impetus to the prevention of COVID-19: people began to take the vitamin en masse. In our northern latitudes, this is reasonable, however, alas, it has nothing to do with the prevention of coronavirus infection. This has been proven in a large-scale study.
The research results are published in the scientific journal JAMA Network Open.
The factors affecting the risk of infection with SARS-CoV-2 and the course of the disease have been studied by various scientists for over a year. It has been established that representatives of the black race and Hispanics, overweight people are at risk. It was long thought to include those with low vitamin D levels, but now it turns out that this is not the case.
If earlier researchers simply compared the level of this vitamin in small groups of patients with positive PCR for coronavirus, now a retrospective study was conducted that lasted several months, covered more than 18 thousand people (37-56 years old) and took into account not only the level of vitamin D before the pandemic, but also other factors that ensured the purity of the experiment: geographic location, body mass index (BMI), smoking, race, sex, age, etc. For example, blacks have higher vitamin D levels in general than whites, but at the same time They get sick with COVID-19 much more often and more severely.
The study was conducted among participants in a biometric screening program funded by American employers (within its framework, people undergo various examinations: measuring blood pressure, BMI, donating blood for sugar, cholesterol, vitamin D levels). Additionally, participants were offered free testing for IgG antibodies against SARS-CoV-2.
Of the 18,148 study participants, 900 (5%) were diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2. At the same time, 10,876 (59.9%) had insufficient (
The researchers concluded that vitamin D levels did not play a role in susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection: “On the one hand, we confirmed the observations of colleagues who found that the bodies of former carriers of the virus often have unusually low levels of vitamin D. another, the statistical link between vitamin deficiency and the likelihood of contracting COVID-19 disappeared after we took into account all the side factors, including age, gender and excess weight. “
– The results of this work cannot be ignored, – says infectious disease doctor Nikolai Goryunov. – Other factors make a much greater contribution to the risk of contracting a coronavirus infection: chronic diseases, bad habits, social status, physical inactivity, etc. In addition, it is known that immunity and vaccination have a huge role in the prevention of viral diseases, but to stimulate immunity with drugs , vitamins, microelements do not work. Therefore, if a person complains and has a lack of vitamin D, then you need to change your diet, and also try to stay in the sun for 30-60 minutes a day. Tests for vitamin D levels are not particularly indicative: its level changes throughout the day, depending on many factors, including food intake. As a prevention and treatment for COVID-19, it is pointless to take this vitamin. In addition, taking this vitamin only to replenish the indicator is also meaningless: this will not affect health indicators and well-being either. I would advise to investigate the level of vitamin D only in case of serious diseases: osteoporosis, obesity, increased skin pigmentation.
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