82.2% of COVID-19 patients tested were found to be deficient in...

The research linking Vitamin D deficiency and the effects of COVID-19 along with the severity of COVID-19 outcomes and treatment with vitamin D is mounting up.

We told you about a pilot study a while back that was released in August 2020 to assess the clinical effectiveness of treatment of patients hospitalized for COVID-19 with calcifediol (25-hydroxyvitamin D3).

The highlights of this study indicated that the vitamin D endocrine system may have a variety of actions on cells and tissues involved in COVID-19 progression and that the administration of calcifediol or 25-hydroxyvitamin D to hospitalized COVID-19 patients significantly reduced their need for Intensive Care United admission. (Castillo et al 2020).

Vitamin D seems to be able to reduce severity of the disease.

But wait, there's more.

Researchers in Spain found that 82.2% of COVID-19 patients tested were found to be deficient in vitamin D. (Hernández et al 2020)

Aside from the impact of insulin resistance on the severity of COVID-19 outcomes, Vitamin D deficiency is emerging as a primary risk factor for the severity of COVID-19 infections. 

It would be foolish to not consider assessing one's current serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) and determining the best supplementation to address increasing that level over time. 

For instance, for an individual weighing 185 lbs that was categorized at a high risk for viral infection with low vitamin D levels in the blood measuring at 10 ng/ml and wished to increase their amount to a high vitamin D level of 60 ng/ml in order to lower their risk of infection, that person would need a supplementation amount of: 10000 IU* per day (more than their current intake) to be sufficient  to achieve the recommended target serum level of 60 ng/ml. *Values rounded to the nearest 1000 IU

Vitamin D plays a significant role in our health. It can reduce the survival and replication of viruses, reduce cellular inflammation, maintain vascular integrity by effecting vascular inflammation and clotting factors, reduce blood pressure by it's role in the conversion of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2, lower cancer risk, improve bone and connective tissue healing, decrease risk of autoimmune disease, and more.

To optimize vitamin D absorption and utilization, be sure to take your vitamin D with vitamin K2 and magnesium. A person supplementing Vitamin D for the hope to raise serum blood levels should retest their serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) every three to four months. 

References:
Castillo M.E., Entrenas Costa L.M., Vaquero Barrios J.M., Alcalá Díaz J.F., Miranda J.L., Bouillon R., Quesada Gomez J.M. Effect of calcifediol treatment and best available therapy versus best available therapy on intensive care unit admission and mortality among patients hospitalized for COVID-19: A pilot randomized clinical study. J. Steroid Biochem. Mol. Biol. 2020;203:105751. doi: 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2020.105751

José L Hernández, Daniel Nan, Marta Fernandez-Ayala, Mayte García-Unzueta, Miguel A Hernández-Hernández, Marcos López-Hoyos, Pedro Muñoz Cacho, José M Olmos, Manuel Gutiérrez-Cuadra, Juan J Ruiz-Cubillán, Javier Crespo, Víctor M Martínez-Taboada, Vitamin D Status in Hospitalized Patients With SARS-CoV-2 Infection, The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, , dgaa733, https://doi.org/10.1210/clinem/dgaa733