"Vitamin D Deficiency Increases Risk of Severe COVID-19 and Death"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjung] A study has found that vitamin D deficiency may increase the risk of severe progression or death from COVID-19.

On the 5th (local time), the science news site EurekAlert of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) reported that a research team led by Dr. Amiel Dror, an otolaryngologist at Bar-Ilan University and Galilee Medical Center (GMC) in Israel, analyzed the medical records of 1,176 PCR-positive COVID-19 patients admitted to Galilee Medical Center between April 2020 and February 2021, revealing this fact.

The research team analyzed the correlation between blood vitamin D levels and COVID-19 prognosis in 253 patients who had records of blood vitamin D measurements taken between two weeks and two years before COVID-19 infection. Among the subjects, 52% had blood vitamin D levels classified as 'deficient' at 20ng/mL or below, 14% were in the 'insufficient' range of 20?29ng/mL, 17% had 'sufficient' levels of 30?39ng/mL, and 16% had 'high' levels of 40ng/mL or above.

The research team reported that patients with blood vitamin D levels of 20ng/mL or below before COVID-19 infection were found to have a 14 times higher risk of symptoms worsening to severe or critical conditions compared to patients with levels of 40ng/mL or above. Their mortality rate was also over 10 times higher at 25.6%, compared to 2.3% in patients with vitamin D levels of 40ng/mL or above.

This correlation was found to be independent of the timing of vitamin D deficiency before COVID-19 infection. The research team stated that even after considering other variables such as age, gender, season (summer/winter), and underlying diseases, the results were similar. In particular, the team suggested that these findings might help explain why COVID-19 symptoms manifest differently among individuals.

Vitamin D is known as a nutrient that protects bone health and has functions in immune regulation and inflammation control. It is mainly supplied through sunlight exposure, but due to reduced outdoor activities in recent times, supplementation through nutritional supplements is common.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.