Critically ill patients often lack vitamin D

Study details

42 (20 males and 22 females) critically ill patients were enrolled in the trail conducted by the researchers at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in Sydney, Australia. All patients were being treated in an intensive care unit.

Using blood monitoring technique, researchers measured vitamin D levels in all 42 patients. More than half (23 patients) were reportedly found deficient in vitamin D, a deficiency medically termed as hypovitaminosis D.

Three patients who reportedly measured the lowest levels of vitamin D died during the course of the study, researchers reported.

"In our study, 55 percent of critically ill patients were vitamin D-deficient. It appears that the sicker they were, the lower their vitamin D,” study’s lead researcher Dr. Paul Lee, from Garvan Institute stated.

Furthermore, to gauge if replenishing vitamin D would improve outcomes in such critically ill patients, researchers administered Vitamin D supplements to 10 patients.

However, no protective effect was noticed, researchers marked.

"If you go into illness with a significant vitamin D deficiency, it makes whatever the underlying cause of the hospitalization worse," said Dr. Kirit Tolia, endocrinology expert at Providence Hospital in Southfield.

Though it is unclear whether being vitamin D deficient and critically ill is just an association or vitamin D deficiency itself contributes to disease severity, Lee and his colleagues believe that the tissues’ demand for vitamin D increases during infection, metabolic disturbances and inflammation. Thus more levels of Vitamin D are used up during critical illness.

“However, it is a hypothesis, and the relationship between vitamin D and critical illness requires further studies in the future,” Lee marked.

About vitamin D

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin. It is characterized as the “sunshine vitamin” because of its unique quality of being produced by the body upon exposure to sun.

Vitamin D plays a vital role in strengthening bone and fabricating healthy teeth. Besides its basic function of boosting the body’s calcium absorption, vitamin D also plays an important role in upholding the immune systemdefine. People with low vitamin D levels are more susceptible to autoimmune diseases, such as type 1 diabetesdefine, multiple sclerosis and certain types of cancers, researchers noted.

A moderate sun exposure can make up for depleted levels, researchers say. But despite being the best and cheapest source, excessive sun exposure can cause skin cause, experts warn.

Besides sun exposure, few foods like oily fish and eggs are naturally rich in vitamin D. Vitamin D is also found in fortified milk, margarine, oil spreads, yogurt and breakfast cereals.