About 50% of the world’s population is vitamin D deficient, putting them at increased risk of health problems such as bone fractures, diabetes, heart disease, and even certain types of cancer, the paper says. Tailoring vitamin D supplements to factors such as season, personal genetics, blood test results, and lifestyle may help prevent and treat these conditions.
“Vitamin D is an essential nutrient that plays an important role in promoting overall health and well-being,” write review co-author Tamara Solic and colleagues from the Ugljan Psychiatric Hospital in Ugljan, Croatia.
The researchers noted that the appropriate doses and precise effects of vitamin D supplements in health conditions are still inconclusive, and said, “We provide a more comprehensive insight into this subject and draw more concrete conclusions.” “Further research is needed,” he added.
A “global pandemic” of vitamin D deficiency
Vitamin D plays an important role in maintaining healthy levels of calcium and phosphate in the blood, and most of our intake comes from exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light, which is typically found in sunlight. It comes from vitamin D, which is produced in the skin when The rest comes from our diet, which is most abundant in fatty fish, egg yolks, and mushrooms.
Factors contributing to vitamin D deficiency in the world’s population include spending more time indoors, an increasing proportion of older people whose skin is less efficient at synthesizing vitamin D, and other factors such as skin color and geographic location. factors include. Therefore, nutritional supplements help people maintain good health.
“Vitamin D intake is generally considered safe when taken at recommended doses,” the researchers wrote. “But too much of a good thing can sometimes do more harm than good. Taking excessively high doses of vitamin D without control can have very serious, undesirable consequences. there is.”
The review suggests that in the future, precision supplements may be able to address vitamin D deficiency in people at risk groups, and that specific approaches will take “the best of available resources, technology and science.” change based on progress.
Martin Hewson, director of the Institute of Metabolism and Systems at the University of Birmingham, who was not involved in the study, said he believed overdosing on vitamin D was a rare event, although it received a lot of media attention. “I think it is more cost-effective to assume that vitamin D deficiency is common around the world and that national vitamin D fortification programs are therefore a priority,” he said.
For example, parts of North America are fortifying products such as milk and orange juice with vitamin D, and many countries are required to develop national plans to improve vitamin D intake. “The technology for adding vitamin D to certain foods, such as flour, has improved significantly in recent years, so there’s no reason not to do this,” Hewson said.
The future of vitamin D supplementation
In the future, digital health tools and wearable devices will be used to monitor a person’s vitamin D intake by measuring exposure to natural light, just as we monitor blood sugar levels and sports activity today. This review suggests that this may be possible. Supplements can also be used to enhance the effectiveness of treatments for related diseases such as cancer.
“Vitamin D is thought to be associated with many non-skeletal human health problems, but it is difficult to convince clinicians to incorporate vitamin D supplements as part of treatment for these diseases.” Dr. Hewson says. “However, when patients are analyzed as part of the management of cancer or autoimmune diseases, they can often be found to be vitamin D deficient, so doctors naturally It will be treated.”
The role of vitamin D in many diseases is becoming increasingly clear in a growing body of research. Additionally, more effective and bioavailable types of vitamin D supplements may be developed using new delivery methods such as nanoparticles and liposomal formulations.
“The field of vitamin D research is very broad, and there are many exciting areas with immediate results,” Huelson added. “But we still need to sort out the basics: What is the optimal level of vitamin D for humans, and how can we best achieve this?”
sauce: nutrients
2024, 16(8), 1176, doi: 10.3390/nu16081176
“The Power of Vitamin D: Is There a Future for Precision Nutrition with Individualized Supplement Plans?”
Author: Mladen Mavar et al.
