Does Vitamin D Make the World Go ‘Round’?

Abstract

Vitamin D has emerged from obscurity, and its effects on various organ systems throughout the body down to the cellular level are being discovered. What was once thought to be a simple hormone affecting only bone and calcium metabolism has shifted. We no longer see vitamin D as a "vitamin" important only in childhood, but as a complex hormone that is involved not only in calcium homeostasis but also in the integrity of the innate immune system. Vitamin D deficiency is linked to inflammatory and long-latency diseases such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, tuberculosis, diabetes, and various cancers, to name a few. In this review, we trace how we came to view vitamin D and how that view led to one of the largest epidemics of nutrient deficiency beginning in the late 20(th) century. We then discuss the needs of vitamin D in the context of the breastfeeding mother and her infant and child, why breastfed infants are particularly at risk, and what to do about it.

New Reference Values for Vitamin D

“…However, very high maternal intake of up to 160 µg per day would be necessary to influence the breast milk’s vitamin D content [17,35]. Because the side effects of very high vitamin D intake are not well known [36], such a high vitamin D intake is not recommended. Thus, the estimated value of adequate vitamin D intake with missing endogenous synthesis during pregnancy and lactation is set to 20 µg per day, as in adolescents and adults.…”

Vitamin D status in professional ballet dancers: Winter vs. summer

“…6 Scientists no longer see serum 25(OH)D as a "vitamin" important only to bone, but as a complex hormone involved in a wide range of functions from calcium homeostasis to the integrity of the innate immune system. Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with inflammatory and long-latency diseases such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, tuberculosis, diabetes, and various cancers, 7 though there is no causal evidence for most of these associations.…”

Is vitamin D in rheumatoid arthritis a magic bullet or a mirage? The need to improve the evidence base prior to calls for supplementation

“…Requests for 25(OH)D measurement are also rapidly expanding, particularly in primary care (7). Many researchers advocate "correction" of vitamin D deficiency in RA, as well as in other conditions (8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14). We sought to determine the evidence base for such recommendations and, in doing so, to highlight potential limitations in the "vitamin D hypothesis.…”