Vitamin D protects our bones, cells, muscles, cardiovascular system and immune system.
The vitamin D is present in fatty fish such as salmon or tuna, in cod liver oil, milk or eggs. Synthesized using ultraviolet B from the sun, it has different functions in the body: it protects our bones, our cells, our muscles and our cardiovascular system, but it would also be beneficial to the immune system. The National Academy of Medicine says it would also be useful in the fight against the new coronavirus.
An action on the “cytokine storm“
In his communicatedthe institution explains that vitamin D “plays a role in regulating and suppressing the cytokine inflammatory response that causes the acute respiratory distress syndrome that characterizes the severe and often lethal forms of Covid-19.”. The “cytokine storm” is the consequence of a strong reaction of the immune system and causes hyperinflammation. For the patient, this results in serious difficulty in breathing. vitamin D would regulate this response by acting on white blood cells and limiting the release of inflammatory cytokines.
The recommendations of the National Academy of Medicine
The National Academy of Medicine notes a “significant correlation between low serum vitamin D levels and Covid-19 mortality”, proven by different studies. It recalls that this substance is neither a preventive nor curative treatment, but can be administered as an adjuvant, that is to say to complete the action of other drugs. The Academy recommends evaluating the serum vitamin D level in people over 60 suffering from Covid-19, and supplementing them in the event of a deficiency with a dose of 50,000 to 100,000 IU. Those under 60 who are positive for Covid-19 should also be supplemented daily.
Ongoing studies
A american study, published in May 2020, shares this observation. The work carried out indicates that the people deficient in vitamin D are twice as likely to develop a severe form of Covid-19, compared to non-deficient people. In mid-October, British researchers, from Queen Mary University, have launched a trial to analyze the effects of vitamin D on the immune system, in the context of Covid-19. Vitamin D deficient patients have been recruited and will be supplemented for six months. Thanks to the results, the researchers hope to understand whether vitamin D has a protective effect against the virus. “Vitamin D supplementation is inexpensive, low risk and widely availableunderlines the main author of the study David Jolliffe. “If proven to be effective, it could make a significant contribution to our overall fight against the virus..”
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