Vitamin D, is produced by humans in response to sun exposure. Nearly fifty percent (50%) or half of Americans are deficient in Vitamin D, with much higher rates seen in African Americans, Hispanics and individuals living in areas with cold weather like Chicago, where it is difficult to get enough exposure to the sun during the wintertime. Additionally, the pandemic has forced people to stay inside more than usual.
Dr. David Meltzer and his research team looked at 489 patients at the University of Chicago Medicine, whose vitamin D level was measured within a year before being tested for COVID-19. Patients who had vitamin D deficiency and was not treated were almost twice as likely to test positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus compared to patients who had sufficient levels of the vitamin.
“Vitamin D is important to the function of the immune system and vitamin D supplements have previously been shown to lower the risk of viral respiratory tract infections,” said David Meltzer, MD, PhD, Chief of Hospital Medicine at U-Chicago Medicine and lead author of the study. “Our statistical analysis suggests this may be true for the COVID-19 infection.”
So, do not forget to check your Vitamin D and supplement it if you are deficient.
Sources:
David O. Meltzer, MD, PhD; Thomas J. Best, PhD; Hui Zhang, PhD; et al. JAMA Netw Open. 2020;3(9):e2019722. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.19722
Vitamin D deficiency may raise risk of getting COVID-19 originally written by Gretchen Rubin