“In the vitamin D group, the incidence of autoimmune disease was 22% ↓ than that of the control group.”
“Effect started two years following the start of the clinical trial… Growing bigger in 5 years”
“Binding to immune cell receptors… Activation of the performance function of the immune system”
vitamin D. Getty Images Bank
Vitamin D helps to absorb calcium, strengthens bones, and strengthens the immune system. Vitamin D is synthesized in the body when the skin receives ultraviolet rays from the sun or is ingested through supplements. That’s why vitamin D is nicknamed the ‘sunshine vitamin’.
However, large-scale clinical trials have shown that vitamin D supplementation can reduce the risk of autoimmune diseases.
An autoimmune disease is a disease that occurs when the immune system misidentifies and attacks its own organs, tissues, and cells as foreign substances. These include rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, lupus, inflammatory bowel disease, type 1 diabetes, psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and celiac disease.
According to HealthDay News and News Medical Life Science on the 27th, a research team led by Dr. Karen Costenbader, a rheumatologist at Harvard Medical School, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, announced the results of this clinical trial.
The research team conducted a large-scale clinical trial with a randomized control group targeting 25,871 males and females 50 years of age and older (mean age 67).
The trial participants did not have vitamin D deficiency and had no risk factors for autoimmune disease.
The research team divided them into a group administered with 2000 IU of vitamin D supplement, a placebo group, a group administered with 1 g of omega-3 fatty acids, and a placebo group, and compared and analyzed the incidence of autoimmune disease over 5.3 years.
As a result, the vitamin D group showed a 22% lower rate of autoimmune disease than the control group, and the omega-3 group had a 15% lower rate than the control group.
This effect of vitamin D supplementation began to become noticeable two years following the start of the clinical trial, and the effect became even greater following five years.
The dose of 2000 IU of vitamin D used in clinical trials is 2-3 times higher than the recommended amount for adults. In general, 600 IU per day for adults under the age of 69 and 800 IU per day for adults over 70 is recommended.
The research team plans to follow up the development of autoimmune diseases in clinical trial participants over the next several years.
According to the research team, vitamin D binds to receptors on immune cells and activates various functions performed by the immune system.
As there are regarding 80 types of autoimmune diseases, the research team emphasized that the results of this study are very important.
The results of the study were published in the latest issue of the British Medical Journal.
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