ARE YOU TAKING THIS SUPER VITAMIN

Preventing and treating heart disease in some patients could be as simple as supplementing their diet with extra vitamin D, according to two new studies published in the American college of cardiology meeting.

While mothers have known that feeding their kids builds strong bones, a new study by researchers from   the Heart Institute at Intermountain Medical Center in Salt Lake City suggests that Vitamin D contributes to a strong and healthy heart as well — and that inadequate levels of the vitamin may significantly increase a person’s risk of stroke, heart disease, and death, even among people who’ve never had heart disease.

The link between vitamin D deficiency and increased risk for coronary artery disease was established in this study. These new studies show that treating vitamin D deficiency with supplements may help to prevent or reduce a person’s risk for cardiovascular disease and a host of other chronic conditions like depression weight gain and various forms of cancers.The sudy could establish the optimal level of Vitamin D which can reduce further risk .

Patients with very low levels of Vitamin D were 77 percent more likely to die, 45 percent more likely to develop coronary artery disease, and 78 percent were more likely to have a stroke than patients with normal levels. Patients with very low levels of Vitamin D were also twice as likely to develop heart failure than those with normal Vitamin D levels.

Findings from the study were presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Conference on Nov. 16 2009 in Orlando, Florida, and at the American College of Cardiology 59th annual scientific session in Atlanta on March 15, 2010.

Vitamin D replacement therapy has long been associated with reducing the risk of fractures and diseases of the bone,” but studies show that vitamin D could have far greater implications in the treatment and reduction of cardiovascular disease and other chronic conditions, which includes diabetes and varying forms of cancers, than we previously thought. Apart from the diseases mentioned above there has been heart throbbing evidences that Vitamin D may slow the progressive decline in lung function resulting from airway remodeling over time. In airway remodeling certain types of smooth muscle grow more prominent, cause inflammation, and can cause damage to the lungs. It was shown in  a recent study that supplementing Vit D improved airway responsiveness to inhaled steroids The researchers believe that the remodeling can possibly be prevented or slowed down if adequate amounts of vitamin D are consumed.

For the first study, researchers followed two groups of patients for an average of one year each. In the first study group, over 9,400 patients, mostly female, reported low initial vitamin D levels, and had at least one follow up exam during that time period. Researchers found that 47 percent of the patients who increased their levels of vitamin D between the two visits showed a reduced risk for cardiovascular disease. In the second study, researchers placed over 31,000 patients into three categories based on their levels of vitamin D. The patients in each category who increased their vitamin D levels to 43 nanograms per milliliter of blood or higher had lower rates of death, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, myocardial infarction, heart failure, high blood pressure, depression, and kidney failure. Currently, a level of 30 nanograms per milliliter is considered “normal..In a small study conducted in our department we were surprised to find that more than 75% of patients admitted with a heart attack had severe vitamin d defieciency( less than 10 ng/ml), and varying degrees of vitamin d deficiency/insuffiency was found in nearly whole population. This may probably explain why we are becoming the diabetic and heart disease capital in the world.

Treatment options in this case are simple, starting with a blood test to determine a patient’s vitamin D level. If low levels are detected, supplements and/or increased exposure to sunlight may be prescribed.

Increasing vitamin D intake by 1000 to 5000 international units (IU) a day may be appropriate, depending on a patient’s health and genetic risk. Supplements are the best source of vitamin D because they are relatively inexpensive and can be found at almost any drug store. Most supplements provide an average of 400 IU per tabletwhich is inadequate.Commercially available preparations include  calcirol sachet is available which may be used once a week along with milk for 8 weeks followed by 1 sachet every fortnight or CLOFEROL D 2000IU  tablets once a day will correct any deficiency and we have started to prescribe it to  our patients. While exposure to 20-30 minutes of sunlight can provide up to 10,000 IU, it is important to use light sunscreen and avoid the hottest parts of the day in order to avoid sunburn and the harmful UV rays associated with skin cancer. Whole body exposure 15 minutes twice  a week will be enough.

I am convinced that we are going to witness a very major change in the management of many chronic diseases including heart disease diabetes and cancer. Translating new medical information into daily practice and increasing public awareness is important.

NEW INFORMATION

added on sep 28,2010

Statin induced myalgia (muscle pain) may be resolved by correcting vitamin D deficiency, consider vitamin D supplements  for myalgias.  [A case report : Southern Medical Journal Sept.2010].  Some patients complain of muscle pain after taking statins which may be due to undetected vitamin D deficiency or  hypothyroidism.  According to the new study supplementation with vitamin D resolved muscle pain in majority of the patients.