Swine Flu Prevention Should Include Vitamin D

Sunshine Vitamin May Prevent Colds & Flu But Only With Proper Levels

Oct 22, 2009

As the country battles the swine flu, it's a good idea to increase Vitamin D to boost your immunity. Be sure to take the right kind of D and a sufficient amount.

Vitamin D has received increased attention due to its crucial role in disease prevention and immune response.

People deficient in vitamin D who don't get enough sun may need to supplement, particularly during winter months. D3 or cholecalciferol is the form the Vitamin D Council recommends, and in sufficient amounts.

Vitamin D Useful Against Cancer, Bone Issues, Colds and Flu, and More

Despite the name, vitamin D isn't a vitamin; it's a secosteroid hormone that targets over 2000 genes in the human body. Vitamin D has been shown, according to the Vitamin D Council, to have a positive effect on bone health, immunity, cancer prevention and inflammation. Vitamin D3 is made in large quantities when sunlight strikes bare skin. Ergocalciferol, also referred to as vitamin D2 or Calciferol is available, but it isn't the naturally occurring form of vitamin D in humans.

Dr. John Jacob Cannell, MD, Vitamin D Council’s Executive Director, notes on their website that current research links Vitamin D deficiency to at least 17 variations of cancer as well as heart disease, stroke, hypertension, autoimmune diseases, diabetes, depression, chronic pain, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, muscle weakness, muscle wasting, birth defects, periodontal disease, and more.

In addition, vitamin D promotes calcium absorption in the gut and maintains adequate serum calcium and phosphate concentrations. This critical substance is needed for bone growth and remodeling, and without a sufficient amount, bones can become thin, brittle, or misshapen. Vitamin D can prevent rickets in children, osteomalacia in adults, and can help protect older adults from osteoporosis.

Vitamin D: Flu Season & the Sunshine Link

Most vitamin D is created from exposure to UV-B radiation from the sun. As a result, vitamin D deficiency is more common in the winter, when cold and flu levels reach their peak in populations.The rapid spread of the flu usually stops by May when population 25(OH) D levels quickly rise.

A large study appearing in the February 2009 Archives of Internal Medicine found that people with the lowest blood vitamin D levels reported having more recent colds or flu. The risks rose in adults and children who had acute or chronic respiratory disorders. "The findings of our study support an important role for vitamin D in prevention of common respiratory infections, such as colds and the flu," says Adit Ginde, MD, MPH, UC Denver Division of Emergency Medicine and lead author of the study.

There are no significant dietary sources of vitamin D, so unless people get adequate sun exposure or take supplements during the winter months, their immune system is easily compromised.

How Vitamin D Fights Colds and Flu

The body's immune system naturally produces antimicrobial, (destroying or inhibiting the growth of microorganisms), peptides or (AMPs). These AMPs won't work with every virus it comes in contact with, but for the ones they do, the body's immune system automatically springs into action.

When microbes like the influenza virus reach upper respiratory airways, they stimulate the production of an enzyme that converts 25(OH)D, the circulating inactive form of vitamin D, into the hormonally active 1,25(OH)2D (1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D). 1,25(OH)2D is needed to activate the genes that produce antimicrobial peptides.

Vitamin D Levels Must Be High Enough To Aid Flu Prevention

Although the risk of vitamin D3 toxicity is very unlikely, people's fear of overdosing remains high.

Dr. Cannell and other vitamin D researchers recommend taking enough Vitamin D3 to get 25(OH)D levels above "substrate starvation levels," 50 ng/mL or 125 nmol/L. Current recommendations are inadequate to maintain optimal health, and certainly to prevent or treat colds and flu.

The Vitamin D Council recommends people supplement with vitamin D before getting a blood test, then adjust their dose so their 25(OH)D level is between 50–80 ng/ml during both the summer and the winter. The council cautions that these are conservative dosage recommendations. People who avoid the sun, and nearly all dark-skinned people need to increase their dose if their blood levels are still low, even after two months of the above dosage, particularly during the winter months.

Exact levels, explains Dr. Cannell, are difficult to determine because requirements vary by age, body weight, percent of body fat, latitude, skin coloration, season of the year, use of sun block, individual variation in sun exposure, and how sick someone is.

“If you use suntan parlors once a week,” says Dr. Cannell, “or if you live in Florida and sunbathe once a week, year-round, do nothing.” However, if you receive very little UVB exposure the Council recommends the following dosing levels of D3:

Consult with a health care provider before taking vitamin D, particularly if you have any of the following conditions: sarcoidosis, primary hyperparathyroidism, granulomatous disease, or other conditions that cause high blood calcium.

Vitamin D has received increased attention due to its critical role in bone health, cancer prevention and immunity. People who test low or who have risk factors need to supplement. Take the optimal form and dose particularly during the winter months to prevent and treat colds and flu.

Dr. J.J. Cannell, Executive Director Vitamin D Council ,“H1N1 and Vitamin D,” http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/newsletter/h1n1-flu-and-vitamin-d.shtml

Adit A. Ginde; Jonathan M. Mansbach; Carlos A. Camargo Jr., “Association Between Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Level and Upper Respiratory Tract Infection in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey,” Archives of Internal Medicine, 2009.

Cannell, JJ, Vieth R, Umhau, JC, Holick MF, Grant WB, Madronich S, Garland CF, Giovannucci E., “Epidemic influenza and Vitamin D,” Epidemiology and Infection 2006 Dec;134(6):1129-40. Epub 2006 Sep 7.

Vieth R et al, “The urgent need to recommend an intake of vitamin D that is effective,” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2007;85:649-650.

The copyright of the article Swine Flu Prevention Should Include Vitamin D in Natural Medicine is owned by Laura Owens. Permission to republish Swine Flu Prevention Should Include Vitamin D in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.