Vitamin D in Prevention and Treatment of COVID-19: Current Perspective and Future Prospects
J Am Coll Nutr. 2020 Sep 1;1-14. doi: 10.1080/07315724.2020.1806758
Navya Vyas 1 2, Shilia Jacob Kurian 2 3, Debasis Bagchi 4, Mohan K Manu 2 5, Kavitha Saravu 2 6, Mazhuvancherry Kesavan Unnikrishnan 7, Chiranjay Mukhopadhyay 8, Mahadev Rao 3, Sonal Sekhar Miraj 2 3
COVID-19 treated by Vitamin D - studies, reports, videos as of July 29 includes
- 21 trials (generally treatment, not prevention), +10 observational studies,
- +7 recommendations, +34 associations, +58 speculations, +20 videos,
and has the following recent updates
Top Vitamin D and COVID-19 recent updates
- Hospital COVID-19 observation: 7X more likely to live if more than 20 ng of vitamin D– Nov 19, 2020
- Severe COVID-19 not fought by 200,000 IU of vitamin D - RCT Nov 18, 2020
- Higher vitamin D associated with fewer cases and deaths in India Nov 2020
- COVID-19 defeated 3x faster by 420,000 IU Vitamin D nanoemulsion – RCT Nov 12, 2020
- 2X fewer COVID-19 deaths observed if infrequent vitamin D (2X more deaths if daily dose) – UK Oct 20, 2020
- Vitamin D fighting COVID-19 meets all Bradford Hill Criteria - Nov 2020
- French National Academy recommended 100,000 IU of Vitamin D to elderly to fight COVID-19 - May 2020
- Chinese COVID-19 study – 80 pct of severe cases had low Vitamin D, all asymptomatic cases had OK Vit D – Oct 13, 2020
- Vitamin D and COVID-19 - observational studies found it helps, never hurts - Campbell Oct 31, 2020
- COVID-19 increased risks with low vitamin D: Infection 1.5 X, Hospitalization 1.8 X – meta-analysis Oct 2020
- COVID-19 lung death 4X more likely in Iran if less than 25 ng of vitamin D – Oct 30, 2020
- Evidence Regarding Vitamin D and Risk of COVID-19 and its Severity - Oct 27, 2020
- COVID-19 patients who happened to be taking Vitamin D did much better – Oct 27,2020
- 9X COVID-19 survival in nursing home if had 80,000 IU dose of vitamin D in previous month – Oct 2020
- COVID-19 fought by Vitamin D in 43 studies - Oct 15, 2020
- 15 studies indicating that Vitamin D fights COVID-19 - Dr. Grimes Oct 9, 2020
- 32X more likely to have severe-critical COVID-19 in Turkish hospital if Vitamin D deficient – Oct 5, 2020
- Vitamin D Cuts SARS-CoV-2 Infection Rate by Half Mercola Sept 28
- 47% lower SARS-CoV-2 positivity rate if > 50 ng vs < 20 ng
- 58% lower risk of testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 if > 30 ng vs < 30 ng
- 2X higher risk of hospitialization if <30 ng
- ICU patients got semi-activated Vitamin D - death rate dropped to 2% from 50%
- Virtually no COVID-19 cases in countries having more than 30 ng of Vitamin D - Sept 17, 2020
- Studies on Vitamin D and COVID-19 (11 categories) - Sept 20, 2020
- Rate of COVID-19 test positive is 40 pcnt lower if high vitamin D (192,000 people) - Holick Sept 2020
- 14.7 X more likely to die of COVID-19 if less than 12 ng of Vitamin D (185 Germans) – Sept 10, 2020
- Low D increases risk of infection. Dr. Fauci Sept 11
- "If you're deficient in vitamin D, that does have an impact on your susceptibility to infection. I would not mind recommending, and I do it myself, taking vitamin D supplements,..." 32 minutes into Instagram interview
- Dr. Fauci takes 6,000 IU of Vitamin D daily – Sept 2020
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- COVID-19 defeated by activated Vitamin D in Spain - pilot RCT Aug 29, 2020
- WHO – Severe COVID-19 mortality reduced by hormones (should consider hormone D too) - Sept 2020
- Vitamin D in Prevention and Treatment of COVID-19 (16 reasons) – Sept 1, 2020
Search Google Scholar for COVID-19 Vitamin D 20,000 publications Oct 10, 2020
Download the PDF from Vitamin D Life
Vitamin D deficiency (VDD) partly explains geographical differences in COVID-19 susceptibility, severity, and mortality. VDD among African-Americans, diabetics, hypertensive, and aged populations possibly explain the higher death rate, aggravated by cocooning. Vitamin D is pleiotropic, mediating bone metabolism, calcium homeostasis, and immune functions, whereas VDD is associated with inflammatory reactions and immune dysfunction, predisposing individuals to severe infections.
Vitamin D modulates innate and adaptive immunity via the expression of genes that code antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). And the expression of cluster of differentiation (CD)14, the co-receptor for epidermal toll-like receptor (TLR)4. AMPs stimulate TLR2 in macrophages, increasing the conversion of vitamin D into its active form by cytochrome P450 27B1. Antiviral properties of vitamin D-induced AMPs can shift the polarization of the adaptive immune response from helper T cells (Th)1 to the more regulatory Th2 responses that suppress immune over-reactivity by preventing cytokine storm, which is already demonstrated during the Spanish flu episode.
Vitamin D induces antiviral effects by both direct and indirect mechanisms via
- AMPs,
- immunomodulation,
- the interplay between major cellular and viral elements,
- induction of autophagy and apoptosis,
- variation of genetic and epigenetic factors.
The crosstalk between vitamin D and intracellular signaling pathways may operate as a primary regulatory action on viral gene transcription.
VDD may increase the likelihood of infection with enveloped viruses, including
- retrovirus,
- hepatitis, and
- dengue.
Key teaching points
Vitamin D induces antiviral effects by direct and indirect mechanisms via
- AMPs,
- immunomodulation,
- induction of autophagy, etc.
Epidemiology of VDD partly explains geographical differences in COVID-19
- susceptibility,
- severity, and
- mortality.
Global data correlates severe VDD with COVID-19 associated
- coagulopathy,
- disrupted immune response and
- mortality,
- reduced platelet count, and
- prolonged prothrombin time,
together suggesting benefits from supplementation. Many clinical trials are underway globally to delineate the role of vitamin D in both prevention and treatment of COVID-19.