Being aware of your vitamin D levels and increasing your levels if you have a deficiency are two of the simplest steps you can take to stay healthy. This includes helping to protect against infectious diseases like COVID-19, as more data show that vitamin D levels are strongly correlated with the severity of SARS-CoV-2 infection.first
In the video above, John Campbell, a retired nurse and teacher in the UK, details the findings of another study that found people with higher levels of vitamin D were less likely to die from COVID. -19 – and shows that a “closer to zero mortality” could theoretically be achieved if your vitamin D levels reach 50 ng/mL.2
Unfortunately, this information has been largely ignored by the major media because it has the potential to save many lives. The good news is that even if the press continues to ignore it, you can easily heed the advice given in a Nature study and raise your vitamin D levels to the most protective.3 This study recommends that above 50 ng/mL, while aiming for 60 to 80 ng/mL could help prevent many diseases, including cancer.
Vitamin D deficiency a major factor behind severe COVID-19
The study authors believe that low vitamin D levels are not a “side effect” of COVID-19 but rather a predictor of infection. Because vitamin D plays a role in immune function, the epidemic of vitamin D deficiency is accelerating the spread of many “diseases of civilization,” such as heart disease,4 with reduced protection from infection:5
“A solid pillar of protection against any kind of viral infection is the strength of our immune systems. Unfortunately, until now, this unquestionable fundamental principle of nature has been more or less ignored by the responsible authorities.
It is well known that our modern lifestyles are far from optimal in terms of nutrition, fitness and entertainment. In particular, many people do not spend enough time in the sun, even in the summer.
The consequence is widespread vitamin D deficiency, which limits the functioning of their immune systems, leads to the increasing spread of a number of preventable diseases of civilization, reduces their ability to protect against infections and reduce the effectiveness of vaccinations. “
Vitamin D3 deficiency, they explain, is also “one of the main reasons for severe episodes of SARS-CoV-2 infection,” and points out that mortality tends to be higher in certain populations. Some people have very low levels of vitamin D3, including the elderly and black people. people and people with comorbidities.6
In the early 20th century, it was discovered that a vitamin D level of 20 ng/mL was sufficient to prevent osteomalacia, or rickets, and this level is still used today as an indicator of vitamin D levels. “enough”. However, it is too low for optimal health and disease prevention other than rickets.
Today, it is known that vitamin D is necessary not only for healthy bones but also for the health of the entire body. As a powerful epigenetic regulator, vitamin D affects the activity of more than 2,500 genes and vitamin D receptors present throughout the body, including in the intestines, pancreas, prostate, and cells of the pancreas. Immune System.7 Vitamin D plays a role in many diseases, including:8
- Cancer
- Diabetes
- Acute respiratory tract infection
- Chronic inflammatory disease
- Autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis
Vitamin D regulates your immune response
Vitamin D receptors are present in nearly all cells of the human immune system, including monocytes/macrophages, T cells, B cells, natural killer cells and dendritic cells. Vitamin D has many effects on the immune system, including enhancing the production of antibacterial peptides by immune cells, reducing harmful pro-inflammatory cytokines, and promoting the expression of anti-inflammatory cytokines.9
Cytokines are a group of proteins that your body uses to control inflammation. If you have an infection, your body releases cytokines to help fight inflammation, but sometimes it produces more than it needs. If the cytokine release spiral spirals out of control, the “cytokine storm” will become dangerous and closely linked with sepsis, which could be an important cause of death in COVID-19 patients.ten
Many COVID-19 treatments focus on eliminating the virus rather than correcting the increased inflammation commonly seen in the disease. In fact, an uncontrolled immune response has been suggested as a factor in disease severity, making immunomodulation “an attractive potential therapeutic strategy”.11
Vitamin D is very relevant here, as it helps regulate both your innate and adaptive immune systems. However, in order to gain this invaluable benefit, your level needs to be higher than officially recommended:twelfth
“The receptor binding is involved in the formation of the ‘vitamin D3 response element’ (VDRE), which regulates a large number of target genes involved in the immune response. As a result of this knowledge, the scientific community now agrees that calcitriol is not only a vitamin but also a highly effective hormone with the same degree of importance for human metabolism. like other steroid hormones.
The blood level that ensures the reliable effect of vitamin D3 for all its vital functions has been discussed again, and as a result 40–60 ng/mL is recommended, which is significantly higher. than is needed to prevent rickets”.
Vitamin D protects against ARDS
Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a lung condition common in severe COVID-19 cases that causes low blood oxygen and fluid buildup in the lungs. Along with cytokine release syndrome, ARDS is one of the deadliest complications of COVID-19, and vitamin D inhibits metabolic pathways that can cause ARDS. According to research on nutrients:13
“Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), part of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS), serves as the main entry point for SARS-CoV-2 into cells. When SARS-CoV-2 is attached to ACE2, its expression is reduced, thereby causing lung injury and pneumonia.
Vitamin D3 is a negative RAS modulator by inhibiting renin expression and stimulating ACE2 expression. Therefore, it has a protective role against ARDS caused by SARS-CoV-2. Sufficient levels of vitamin D3 prevent the development of ARDS by decreasing angiotensin II levels and increasing angiotensin- (1.7) levels. ”
In a previous review,14 The researchers also explain that vitamin D has favorable effects in both the early viral phase of COVID-19 as well as the later super-inflammatory phase,15 including ARDS. “Based on numerous preclinical studies and observational data in humans, ARDS may be aggravated by vitamin D deficiency and diminished by vitamin D receptor activation,”16 they said. “Based on one trial, oral calcifediol may be the most promising approach.”
Even regular “boost” doses of vitamin D, regardless of baseline vitamin D levels, appear to be effective in reducing the risk of death in people hospitalized with COVID-19, especially for the elderly. age.17,18 Furthermore, vitamin D influences several additional functions that also support a strong immune response:19
- Reduces Th1 cell production, stops the progression of inflammation by reducing the inflammatory cytokines produced
- Reduces cytokine storm severity by promoting differentiation of regulatory T cells
- Induces the antibacterial peptide cathelicidin (LL-37), which fights respiratory viruses by disrupting viral envelope and altering host cell viability
- Abnormal decreased blood clotting often occurs in critically ill COVID-19 patients
COVID-19 reduces deaths with higher vitamin D levels
The prominent study involved meta-analysis of two data sets. One used the long-term average vitamin D3 levels for 19 countries, while the other used data from 1,601 hospitalized COVID-19 patients. The hospital data included 784 patients whose vitamin D levels were measured within 24 hours of admission and 817 patients whose vitamin D levels were measured before.
A strong correlation was found between mortality from SARS-CoV-2 and vitamin D levels, so mortality decreased significantly when vitamin D levels reached 30 ng/mL.20 They further note, “Our analysis showed a correlation between the combined data sets that intersected the axis at around 50 ng/mL, which suggests that this blood vitamin D3 level may prevent any any excessive mortality”.21
Given their findings, the authors recommend “regularly strengthening the population’s immune system by supplementing with vitamin D3 to consistently ensure blood levels above 50 ng/mL (125 nmol/L)” .22 Researchers in Indonesia, who reviewed data from 780 COVID-19 patients, also found those with vitamin D levels between 21 ng/mL (52.5 nmol/L) and 29 ng/mL ( 72.5 nmol/L) had a 12.55 times higher risk of death than those with levels above 30 ng/mL.23
Having levels below 20 ng/mL was associated with a 19.12 times higher risk of death. They added: “The majority of cases of COVID-19 insufficient and vitamin D deficiency died.”24
How much vitamin D do you need?
The best way to know how much vitamin D you need is to have your levels checked. It is possible to optimize your vitamin D levels with reasonable sun exposure, but if this is not an option for you, a daily vitamin D3 supplement of up to 10,000 units may be needed to reach these levels. vitamin D from 40 to 60 ng/mL.
However, if you have COVID and haven’t been tested, it’s best to take a prescription vitamin D medication called calcitriol, which is the activated form of vitamin D, because it works right away. The dose is 0.5 mcg the first day and then 0.25 mcg for one week. This is a prescription drug. You should also take 10,000 units of regular vitamin D, which will start working after you stop using calcitriol.
It’s important to note that vitamin D supplements must be balanced with other nutrients, specifically vitamin K2 (to avoid complications related to excessive calcification in your arteries), calcium, and magnesium. . For a different perspective, data from Grass juniorHealth’s D*Action studies suggest that optimal levels for health and disease prevention are between 60 ng/mL and 80 ng/mL, while the upper limit for Sufficient levels seem to be around 40 ng/mL. In Europe, the measurements you’re looking for are 150 to 200 nmol/L and 100 nmol/L, respectively.
Given the impressive findings from this outstanding study and others, it is surprising why large-scale studies were not performed immediately to determine the best dose of vitamin D to protect against COVID-19. As Campbell put it, “The fact that the health authorities don’t do this, because it’s a simple observational study, is really going to the limit of negligence.”25
