It seems like everywhere you go, someone is coughing or sneezing, spreading germs that your body might not be ready to handle.
Fortunately, there’s a way to strengthen your protection against respiratory infections. It may also keep you from landing in the hospital if you do get sick.
All you need is a little sunshine in the form of a vitamin.
Let’s look at what the latest research says about vitamin D’s powerful support against those nasty respiratory infections that can land some of us in the hospital.
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Reduces risk of respiratory infection
Research has shown that vitamin D, often called the sunshine vitamin, is the most effective vitamin for preventing respiratory infections.
In fact, in 2017, a team of researchers at Queen Mary University of London found that daily or weekly supplementation halved the risk of acute respiratory infections (such as colds or flu) in people with the lowest baseline vitamin D levels.
This overall drop in risk was similar to the protection provided by the injectable flu vaccine.
Since then, researchers have also recommended vitamin D to help fight COVID-19 and pneumonia.
But vitamin D does more than help prevent infections. It may help keep you out of the hospital if you do get sick.
Reduces risk of hospitalization
Recently, researchers at the University of Surrey found that people with very low vitamin D levels are hospitalized more often for respiratory infections like bronchitis and pneumonia.
So how much higher is the risk?
After analyzing data from 36,258 UK Biobank participants, the researchers found that people with low vitamin D levels were 33% more likely to be hospitalized for serious respiratory infections than those with sufficient vitamin D.
For every 10 nmol/L increase in vitamin D, the rate of hospitalization for respiratory infections dropped by 4%. This is about the same benefit many people get from a moderate supplement, showing that even small increases in vitamin D can make a big difference.
According to research fellow and study lead author, Abi Bournot, PhD., “Vitamin D is vital to our physical wellbeing. Not only does it keep our bones and muscles healthy, but its antibacterial and antiviral properties are also thought to help reduce the risk of respiratory tract infections that can lead to hospitalization.
“Supplementation of the vitamin, especially in the winter months when our exposure to sunlight is limited, is an effective way of increasing vitamin D and reducing the risk of serious respiratory tract infections. This is particularly important for older people who are at higher risk of death from such infections, and ethnic minority communities in the UK, who are at a higher risk of vitamin D deficiency.”
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Stand up to respiratory infections
Though this study was carried out in the UK, the truth is that vitamin D deficiency is highly prevalent among people living anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere, with studies estimating up to 50% or more are affected, with even higher risk for people of color and older people.
If you want to keep your immune system strong and avoid hospital visits from respiratory germs, making sure you have enough vitamin D is essential. There are two main ways to do this…
First, your body makes vitamin D when you’re in the sun, so try to spend 15 to 20 minutes outside each day. The best time is midday, when the sun is at its strongest. If your skin can handle it, uncover your arms. Adjust your time in the sun based on your skin type to avoid sunburn.
Of course, this isn’t always easy, especially in winter when it’s cold and the days are cloudy, and that’s why supplementing is an important option.
In the case of deficiency, which doctors can test for, a high dose is typically prescribed for several weeks, followed by a lower maintenance dose.
If you decide to supplement your vitamin D, read about this common vitamin D mistake, so you’re not cheating yourself of all the benefits of the sunshine vitamin.
Sources:
Association between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D status and respiratory tract infections requiring hospital admission: unmatched case-control analysis of ethnic groups from the United Kingdom Biobank cohort — ScienceDirect
New variant of the flu virus is driving surge of cases across the U.S. and Canada — UMass Chan Medical School
Low vitamin D levels shown to raise risk of hospitalization with potentially fatal respiratory tract infections by 33% — EurekAlert!