Vitamin D may not protect from Covid infection or severity

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<strong>Genetic evidence does not support vitamin D as a protective measure against Covid-19, say researchers.<br />
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The team from McGill University in Quebec, Canada, analyzed genetic variants of 4,134 individuals with Covid-19, and 1,284,876 without Covid-19, from 11 countries to determine whether genetic predisposition for higher vitamin D levels were associated with less-severe disease outcomes in people with Covid-19.<br />
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The results, published in PLOS Medicine, showed no evidence for an association between genetically predicted vitamin D levels and Covid-19 susceptibility, hospitalisation, or severe disease. This suggests that raising circulating vitamin D levels through supplementation may not improve Covid-19 outcomes in the general population.<br />
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Increased vitamin D levels, as reflected by 25-hydroxy vitamin D measurements, have been proposed to protect against Covid-19 based on in vitro, observational, and ecological studies.<br />
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But, "Vitamin D supplementation as a public health measure to improve outcomes is not supported by this study," said researchers including Guillaume Butler-Laporte and Tomoko Nakanishi from the varsity.<br />
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However, the team noted several limitations, including that the research did not include individuals with vitamin D deficiency, and it remains possible that truly deficient patients may benefit from supplementation for Covid-19 related protection and outcomes.<br />
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Additionally, the genetic variants were obtained only from individuals of European ancestry, so future studies will be needed to determine the relationship with Covid-19 outcomes in other populations.<br />
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A previous study also showed similar results. Scientists from the University of Sao Paulo conducted a clinical trial in Brazil with 240 patients who were given 200,000 IU of vitamin D3 on admission to hospital.<br />
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The supplementation did not reduce length of stay or affect the proportion requiring intensive care, according to the study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).</p>