Vitamin D seems to be the new cure-all for many health problems today. The reality is many of us are low on vitamin D, and with people just now figuring that out, it seems to be fixing many problems.

Low vitamin D levels have been shown to contribute to many diseases including but not limited to cancers, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and most recently, severe covid-19.

Related: Natural Coronavirus Prevention

Despite the correlation some have found between vitamin D levels and disease, other studies have found no health benefits to taking a vitamin D supplement.

A new study may explain the reason for this. Scientists at the University of California have found a link between gut health and vitamin D.

When measuring how much active vitamin D older males had in their blood, the UC San Diego researchers found that its levels correlated with the diversity of the community of bacteria living in their gut, or gut microbiome.

Gut bacteria and vitamin D: What is the link?

The results, published in Nature Communications, show that the body’s ability to convert inactive vitamin D into active vitamin D may make all the difference. Having healthy gut bacteria that are able to metabolize vitamin D is more important than having high levels of vitamin D.

Numerous studies have shown that healthy levels of vitamin D significantly lower your chances for severe Covid-19. A paper published in September 2020 has shown that people with lower vitamin D levels are significantly more likely to test positive for coronavirus.

The study’s lead researcher, Dr. Michael Hollick, is widely considered one of the world’s leading experts in vitamin D. Hollick’s team used retrospective observational analysis of COVID–19 tests to determine whether or not vitamin D levels in the blood impacted test results.

Related: COVID Second Wave Is Happening All Over Europe, Except in Sweden

Data was collected from 191,799 patients in all 50 U.S states from March to June 2020. The data showed that those with a vitamin D level of at least 55 ng/mL had a 47% lower positivity rate than those who had levels below 20 ng/mL. Data showed that the risk of Covid-19 continued to decrease until vitamin D levels reached 55 ng/mL.

This is only the most recent of many studies that have linked higher vitamin D levels to less severe cases of COVID-19.

An Iranian study published online in mid-July 2020 also found that patients with vitamin D levels above 30 ng/mL (75 nmol/L) had better clinical outcomes and a far lower risk of death. Among COVID-19 patients over the age of 40 who had vitamin D levels below 30 ng/mL, 20% died, compared to 9.7% of those with levels at or above 30 ng/mL. Among those with a vitamin D level of at least 40 ng/mL, only 6.3% died.

Vitamin D Cuts SARS-CoV-2 Infection Rate by Half

Related: Coronavirus Supplement Review

If you’re worried about coronavirus, vitamin D can help. However, your primary focus should be gut health. If you eat a diverse diet that promotes gut health (a big salad every day) and get enough sunlight, your vitamin D levels, along with your other vitamin levels should be more than sufficient to prevent COVID-19.

During the Influenza pandemic of 1918, it was common practice for sick patients to be treated outside in tenets or open wards. This is known as the open-air method. The English physician John Coakley used the open-air method in 1791 to treat children suffering from tuberculous.

A combination of fresh air, sunlight, scrupulous standards of hygiene and reusable face masks appear to have substantially reduced deaths among some patients and infections among medical staff.

-20% of COVID Patients Caught Disease at Hospital

Sunlight increases vitamin D levels, which boosts the immune system. Additionally ultraviolet light renders viruses like COVID-19, and the flu, inactive. During the Influenza pandemic, in a typical hospital that had 76 cases, 20 patients would die in a three day period while 17 nurses would become sick. Adopting the “open air” method brought fatalities down from 40% to 13%.

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Today, our modern hospitals are severely lacking in the “open-air” method. It’s been estimated by several different studies that a large portion of COVID-19 cases are being contracted within hospitals. Numbers from NHS England indicate that up to 20% of hospital patients with COVID-19 became infected at the hospital.

Nurses and other staff have inadvertently passed on the virus to patients because they did not have adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) or could not get tested for the virus.

-20% of COVID Patients Caught Disease at Hospital

In Wuhan, China it’s estimated that hospital-related transmission is associated with 41% of cases. In the U.S., it’s estimated that 1.7 million healthcare-associated infections occur in hospitals each year. In past outbreaks, SARS, which is similar to COVID-19 has been said to be a “super spreader” in Ontario in 2003, 77% of SARS cases were contracted in a hospital.

Related: How to Breathe

Dr. John Loannidis recommends not going to the hospital with COVID-19 if your symptoms are mild. Many people are able to spread COVID-19 to those who are immune-compromised. A study analyzed the mortality rates of 5,700 patients in New York City who were placed on ventilators. The mortality rate of these cases was anywhere from 76.4% to 97.2% depending on age.

If you’re worried about COVID-19, having a healthy gut is the best thing you can do to avoid getting sick, and of course sunlight and fresh air are great too.

Recommended: How To Heal Your Gut 

Researchers have discovered a correlation between vitamin D deficiency and COVID-19 mortality rates. A research team led by Northwestern University has examined data from hospitals in China, France, Germany, Italy, Iran, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, the UK, and the US. The data collected shows that patients from places with high mortality rates (Spain, Italy, the UK) had lower vitamin D levels compared to countries that were less affected by the virus.

While I think it is important for people to know that vitamin D deficiency might play a role in mortality, we don’t need to push vitamin D on everybody. This needs further study, and I hope our work will stimulate interest in this area. The data also may illuminate the mechanism of mortality, which, if proven, could lead to new therapeutic targets.

Vitamin D appears to play role in COVID-19 mortality rates

Recommended: How To Heal Your Gut

Backman and his team felt compelled to examine the correlation between death rates and vitamin D levels after noticing “unexplainable differences” in death rates from various countries. They point out that northern Italy, despite its death rate, has one of the best health care systems in the world. Through their research, they found a correlation between lower vitamin D levels and Cytokine storms, a hyperinflammatory condition.

Cytokine storm can severely damage lungs and lead to acute respiratory distress syndrome and death in patients,” Daneshkhah said. “This is what seems to kill a majority of COVID-19 patients, not the destruction of the lungs by the virus itself. It is the complications from the misdirected fire from the immune system.

Vitamin D appears to play role in COVID-19 mortality rates

Source:

• Vitamin D appears to play role in COVID-19 mortality rates –Medical Xpress

Public Health England is recommending that people take vitamin D supplements in an effort to protect themselves from COVID-19. Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that is necessary for healthy bones, teeth, and muscles and boosts immune system health. Exposure to sunlight allows your body to manufacture its own vitamin D, and the British government is concerned that the increased time spent indoors during the pandemic and out of the sun will leave people at a greater risk to the virus.

Related: Sold Out – How To Get Vitamin C (Recipe/DIY)

Unfortunately, as the effects of coronavirus continue, many of us are limited in the time we can spend outdoors. Correctly abiding by government rules and staying at home is immensely important and, while many of us have limited access to sunlight, this means we need to take a little extra care to keep our vitamin D levels healthy.”

Sara Stanner, British Nutrition Foundation

There has been no evidence to suggest that vitamin D is effective in treating coronavirus. But low levels of vitamin D have been associated with an increased risk of respiratory diseases like tuberculosis, asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), as well as viral and bacterial infections. Vitamin D deficiency is already an issue for 42% of Americans.

Related: Supplements To Defend Against Coronavirus

Sources:

• Can Vitamin D Lower Your Risk of COVID-19? – Healthline
• Prevalence of Vitamin D Deficiency and Associated Risk Factors in the US Population (2011-2012) – NCBI

A recent study has shown how the sun can help improve gut health. A study was conducted with 21 women who spent the winter in Canada, and as a result, were vitamin D insufficient. At the beginning of the study, researchers took stool samples and blood samples, in order to test the gut microbiome diversity, and Vitamin D levels, respectively. Research has already shown that UVB exposure can trigger gut microbiome changes in rodents. Prior to the start of the study twelve out of the 21 women were taking vitamin D supplements before the study, according to their samples, had higher levels of Vitamin D and more Gut diversity than those who did not take Vitamin D supplements regularly. At the end of the study, the results showed that short exposure to NB-UVB light did increase vitamin D and added diversity to the gut microbiome. 

Related: How To Heal Your Gut 

“Prior to UVB exposure, these women had a less diverse and balanced gut microbiome than those taking regular vitamin D supplements. UVB exposure boosted the richness and evenness of their microbiome to levels indistinguishable from the supplemented group, whose microbiome was not significantly changed.”

Nearly 70% of Americans suffer from a vitamin D deficiency, and 80% of the body’s Vitamin D requirement is met through skin exposure to UVB light. Vitamin D is technically not a vitamin however it is crucial for important processes in the body. Vitamin D is a fat-soluble hormone your body makes when your skin is exposed to sunlight. Vitamin D is known as the Sunshine Vitamin because the skin produces Vitamin D when exposed to certain wavelengths found in phototherapy modulating cell It is not found in many whole foods but is added to some processed food and is available in supplement form. Vitamin D is known as the sunshine vitamin because the skin produces vitamin D when exposed to certain wavelengths in phototherapy and is optimal for modulating cell growth, optimizing neuromuscular and immune functions and helping the gut absorb calcium. However, Chronic Vitamin D deficiency is associated with Bone diseases, and low levels of vitamin D, (but not necessarily chronically deficient) can cause Accelerating aging, high blood pressure, behavioral problems in adolescents, and elevated leptin levels. 

Related: How to Eliminate IBS, IBD, Leaky Gut 

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is now a fact of life for up to a quarter of Americans, and a review of all available vitamin D and IBS research found that individuals with IBS were likely to have insufficient levels of vitamin D. This is not the first time that a vitamin d deficiency has been linked to a serious disease, despite the lack of conclusive studies. Research from the University of Sheffield also indicated that vitamin d supplementation could alleviate IBS symptoms like abdominal pain, bloating, constipation, and diarrhea. Dr. Bernard Corfe, one of its lead authors says, “The study provides an insight into the condition and, importantly, a new way to try to manage it…It is evident from the findings that all people with IBS should have their vitamin D levels tested and a large majority of them would benefit from supplements.”

Vitamin D Deficiency

Vitamin D is necessary for absorbing calcium and maintaining bone strength, but the lack of it is also keenly felt. Vitamin d deficiencies have been linked to breast cancer, colon cancer, prostate cancer, heart disease, depression, and weight gain in addition to IBS. But vitamin d is a fat-soluble vitamin and at times is stored in the body for months. How do you know when your levels are low? Here are some signs of a deficiency to look out for:

• Muscle weakness and fatigue
• Red or white acne-like bumps on the cheeks, arms, thighs, and butt
• Respiratory problems
• Constant infections
• Depression
• Psoriasis

While these aren’t the only symptoms, they are some of the more subtle ones. If you catch the deficiency in time or know you have one, there are a few ways to fix that.

Get More Vitamin D

When looking to correct a vitamin deficiency, the best place to start is with whole foods. Most of the foods recommended to boost your vitamin d intake are animal-based, including egg yolks, cheese, beef liver, and fatty fish like salmon, tuna, or mackerel. There are a few vegan options, like shitake mushrooms.

There’s also the most obvious source of vitamin d – the sun. There are ways to increase your likelihood of vitamin d absorption from the sun (no sunscreen, for instance), but many locations don’t get enough light during winter months to make the sun a reliable source of vitamin d. That’s especially troubling, as low vitamin d makes people for susceptible to the flu.

This leaves supplementation as the best option for many people. One thing to be careful about? Large amounts of vitamin d for a long time can be toxic.

Simple Things

Medical professionals don’t know what causes IBS, and they don’t know how to treat it. Being aware of your vitamin intake through food, environment or supplementation can make a big difference Vitamin d deficiencies have been linked to major diseases and illnesses. In the face of an increasingly dangerous flu season, now is the time to increase your dose.

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Sources:

• Vitamin D Insufficiency Linked to Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Sports Injuries – Dr. Mercola
• Vitamin D supplements could ease painful IBS symptoms– University of Sheffield
• Vitamin D – The #1 Vitamin You Need: From Treating Depression to Preventing Cancer – Organic Lifestyle Magazine
• The Truth About Vitamin D: Why You Need Vitamin D – Web M.D.
• 10 Vitamin D Deficiency Symptoms Many Doctors Miss – The Healthy Home Economist