As we mentioned in the first part of << Correlation Between Vitamin D and Covid-19 infection>>, we know three significant causes of vitamin D deficiency:
Inadequate exposure to sunlight
Being Obese
Having Kidney disease
Professor Roger Seheult, MD, also considers a fourth element that can lead to Vitamin D deficiency: the HFCS (High-Fructose Corn Sirup). He said there is evidence that HFCS actually can accelerate the inactivation of the active form of Vitamin D. In short, HFCS may cause conversion from 1-25 form (active) to 24-25 form (inactive).
So we may be supplementing and you may be out in the sun, but if we have a high HFCS diet ( not the fructose from fruits and vegetables), we may not get enough 1-25-Vit D.
What should be deficient, insufficient, and optimal levels of vitamin D?
As we get older, our skin's ability to produce Vitamin D drops by more than twofold.
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin, and as such, it is going to store in our body fat. So if we are obese, we have a larger capacity to hold vitamin D, which means we will have less soluble vitamin D to be used. That is why Obesity is associated with Vit D deficiency. Oral Vit D should be able to correct this deficiency. And for those with severe Obesity, larger than usual doses may be required; talk to your primary care physician about this.
If we have heart disease or cancer, our Vitamin D level must be higher.
According to Professor Roger Seheult, observational Data through studies show:
Vit D supplementation did reduce the risk of acute respiratory illnesses
Vit D supplementation did reduce the incidence of Influenza A in schoolchildren.
All countries that lie below the 35th parallel North have relatively low mortality. This suggests a possible role for Vit D (from direct sun exposure) in determining outcome from covid-19.
The higher the Vit D level of a country, the lower the covid-19 cases per million population.
Low blood-level of Vit D is associated with an increased risk of covid-19 infection.
Vit D levels are inversely related to the SARS-Cov-2 positivity rate. And it did not matter in terms of Geography, Race, Age, Sex.
Good to know.😀