UK researchers examining data from a German database have found that low levels of vitamin D are associated with markedly increased death rates from heart disease and other causes
The LURIC database is an ongoing study of thousands of people from a Cardiology unit in southern Germany.
In this study, UK researchers examined data on people in the study with metabolic syndrome, that is people typically with obesity, abnormal blood sugars (type 2 diabetes or its precursors), and some of the effects of these problems, including high blood pressure and abnormal fat profile in blood.
These researchers looked at 1,801 people with metabolic syndrome in the database and correlated their measured blood level of vitamin D with their likelihood of dying from cardiovascular disease, and death from all causes.
Interestingly, 92% of these people had suboptimal vitamin D levels (<75nmol/L).
As anticipated, those with optimal levels had only a quarter of the risk of death from all causes as those with severe deficiency (<25nmol/L) and a third the risk of death from cardiovascular disease.
The benefit of keeping vitamin D at around the middle of the normal range (150nmol/L) on a host of diseases other than MS is being found in more and more studies.