Nutrition Bytes: February 2022

Author: Aryn Doll

Nutrition Bytes: February 2022

Research Continues to Reveal the Importance of Optimal Vitamin D Levels in COVID-19

The latest research continues to highlight the importance of vitamin D levels and risk of COVID-19 infection and disease severity. In a study published in August 2021, researchers in India looked at vitamin D status and symptom severity in 156 COVID-19 positive individuals. Patients were placed into different groups based on the amount of respiratory distress they were experiencing (mild, moderate, and severe) and their vitamin D levels (optimal ≥25ng/mL, mild to moderate deficiency 10-24ng/mL, or severe deficiency <10ng/mL). In comparing the groups, they discovered that as vitamin D status worsened, there was a greater likelihood of more severe symptoms and respiratory distress. The study authors concluded, “Vitamin D status appears to be strongly associated with COVID-19 clinical severity. After COVID-19 confirmation, vitamin D level should be measured in all patients…”¹

Similar findings were observed in a July 2021 study published in the Archives of Microbiology. Researchers obtained blood samples to test vitamin D levels in 191 COVID-19 patients hospitalized with mild and severe cases. Results revealed that 84 percent of patients had vitamin D deficiency (in this case <20ng/mL). Comorbid conditions were also more prevalent among infected individuals, with 67 percent having cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and/or diabetes. Their analysis also indicated that vitamin D deficiency made individuals three times as likely to become infected with COVID-19 compared to healthy controls.²

Vitamin D is known to have anti-inflammatory, anti-viral, and immune modulatory effects, and while its exact role is still being investigated in COVID-19, a recent computer simulation study suggested that vitamin D may work to inhibit replication and expansion of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.³ Together, this research adds to mounting evidence that maintaining optimal vitamin D levels (ideally ≥ 30ng/mL) is important for supporting healthy immunity and for preventing and reducing the severity of respiratory infections, including COVID-19.

References

Nimavat N, Singh S, Singh P, Singh SK, and Sinha N. “Vitamin D deficiency and COVID-19: A case-control study at a tertiary care hospital in India,” Ann Med Surg (Lond). Aug 2021;68: 102662. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34377451/
Matin S, Fouladi N, Pahlevan Y, et al. “The sufficient vitamin D and albumin level have a protective effect on COVID-19 infection,” Archives of Microbiology, July 30, 2021; 203:5153-5162 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00203-021-02482-5#ethics
Qayyum S, Mohammad T, Slominski RM, et al. “Vitamin D and lumisterol novel metabolites can inhibit SARS-CoV-2 replication machinery enzymes,” American Journal of Physiology Endocrinology and Metabolism, July 27, 2021;321(2) https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/ajpendo.00174.20