Vitamin Information Center

Having too little vitamin D in the body might raise the risk of premature death, a study by Johns Hopkins researchers shows.

It follows other recent studies showing that low amounts of vitamin D are linked to certain cancers, diabetes, and bone and immune system problems, but this is the first research to connect vitamin D deficiency to a higher risk of death, said the study’s co- author Erin Michos, an assistant professor of cardiology at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore.

The study appears in this week’s Archives of Internal Medicine.

Michos and her colleagues analyzed data from a large government observational survey of more than 13,000 people who represented a realistic, diverse swath of U.S. adults ages 20 or older. Participants’ vitamin D amounts were determined through blood tests from 1988 through 1994.

By 2000, Michos said, 1,807 deaths had occurred, including 777 from cardiovascular disease.

The researchers divided the total population into four groups based on their amounts of vitamin D. One group included people with the least vitamin D, 17.8 ng/mL (nanograms/milliliter) or less.

A normal vitamin D test result for both children and adults is 30 ng/mL or more. Less than 20 ng/mL is considered deficient, and results between 20 and 30 ng/mL are labeled insufficient, said Catherine Gordon, director of the bone health program at Children’s Hospital Boston.

In the study, Michos said, people who had low vitamin D — 17.8 ng/mL or less — were 26 percent more likely to be dead at the end of the study than those with more.

Michos now suspects that low vitamin D is related to heart disease deaths, but that theory has to be tested in further studies, she said.

Originally published by USA TODAY.

(c) 2008 Tulsa World. Provided by ProQuest LLC. All rights Reserved.

Source: Tulsa World

Low vitamin D levels are associated with a higher risk of death, according to a report released on August 11, 2008 in the Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Vitamin D is a group of prohormones that play important roles in calcium metabolism, bone formation, parathyroid function, and the immune system. Presently, the ideal bood levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) has been suggested as 30 nanograms per milliliter or higher. In the United States, approximately 41% of men and 53% of women have levels lower than 28 nanograms per milliliter.

There are many potential health problems that could contribute to death in individuals with low vitamin D levels, including an effect on blood pressure, insulin response, or risk of obesity and diabetes.

To investigate the potential implications of this deficiency, Michal L. Melamed, M.D., M.H.S., of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, N.Y., and colleagues examined 13,331 individuals in the Third National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey (NHANES III), a large cohort study performed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). These individuals were examined for Vitamin D levels between 1988 and 1994, and tracked through 2000, with a median 8.7 years of follow-up.

In this period, 1,806 participants died. When divided into groups based on vitamin D levels, the group maintaining the lowest level, defined as less than 17.8 nanograms per milliliter, showed a 26% increased risk of death from any cause in comparison with the group with the highest levels of vitamin D. This was not associated with cardiovascular disease or cancer alone.

The authors conclude that “the lowest 25(OH)D quartile (less than 17.8 nanograms per milliliter) is associated with a higher risk of all-cause mortality in the general U.S. population.” They continue: “Further observational studies are needed to confirm these findings and establish the mechanisms underlying these observations. If confirmed, randomized clinical trials will be needed to determine whether vitamin D supplementation at higher doses could have any potential benefit in reducing future mortality risk in those with 25(OH)D deficiency.”

25-Hydroxyvitamin D Levels and the Risk of Mortality in the General Population
Michal L. Melamed, MD, MHS; Erin D. Michos, MD, MHS; Wendy Post, MD, MS; Brad Astor, PhD
Arch Intern Med. 2008;168(15):1629-1637
Click Here For Abstract

Written by Anna Sophia McKenney
Copyright: Medical News Today

People with low vitamin D levels may face an increased risk for peripheral artery disease, also known as PAD, New York researchers said.Researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University said that PAD is a common disease that occurs when arteries in the legs become narrowed by fatty deposits, causing pain and numbness and impairing the ability to walk.

Lead author Dr. Michal Melamed of Albert Einstein College and colleagues analyzed data from a national survey measuring vitamin D levels in the blood of 4,839 U.S. adults.

The survey tested these people using the ankle-brachial index, a screening tool for PAD that measures blood flow to the legs. Also measured were other risk factors for PAD such as cholesterol levels, blood pressure and presence of diabetes.

The study found that higher levels of vitamin D were associated with a lower prevalence of PAD. Among individuals with the highest vitamin D levels — more than 29.2 nanogram per milliliter (ng/mL) — 3.7 percent had PAD. Among those with the lowest vitamin D levels — less than 17.8 ng/mL — 8.1 percent had PAD.

The findings are being reported at the American Heart Association’s Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology annual conference in Atlanta.

Yes - a blood test called 25-hydroxyvitamin D, which, though expensive ($20 to $100 a pop), is covered by insurance. Your level should be at least 30 nanograms per milliliter of blood and not more than 100. If your level is way below that, say around 18, you need to take 1,200 international units or more a day of vitamin D supplements, either the type called D2 or D3, said Dr. Michael F. Holick, an endocrinologist and leading vitamin D researcher at the Boston University School of Medicine. Continue Reading…