Scientists from the University of South Australia and other institutions have found that vitamin D deficiency may increase the risk of heart disease.
The study was conducted by Ang Zhou and colleagues and published in The European Heart Journal.
Vitamin D is both a nutrient obtained from food and a hormone produced by the body. It is a fat-soluble vitamin that helps the body absorb and retain calcium and phosphorus, minerals essential for maintaining strong bones.
Laboratory studies also suggest that vitamin D may slow cancer cell growth, help control infections, and reduce inflammation.
Because many organs and tissues have vitamin D receptors, researchers believe the vitamin plays important roles beyond bone health. Scientists are actively exploring these additional functions.
Low vitamin D levels have long been linked to a higher risk of heart disease, but the exact nature of this relationship has been unclear.
In the current study, researchers examined the association between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] levels—the main marker of vitamin D status—and the risk of heart disease. They analyzed data from the UK Biobank, including 44,519 cases of heart disease and 251,269 healthy participants. Blood pressure measurements and heart imaging data were also evaluated as secondary outcomes.
The team assessed how much of the heart disease burden could be attributed to low vitamin D levels. They found an L-shaped association between vitamin D levels and heart disease risk:
- Heart disease risk decreased sharply as vitamin D levels rose from very low levels.
- The benefit leveled off once vitamin D levels reached approximately 50 nmol/L.
A similar pattern was observed for both systolic and diastolic blood pressure. No strong associations were found between vitamin D levels and heart imaging results.
The researchers also estimated that increasing vitamin D levels in the general population could lead to a 4.4% reduction in heart disease cases.
Based on the findings, the team concludes that vitamin D deficiency can increase the risk of heart disease, and that reducing low vitamin D levels at the population level could help lessen the burden of cardiovascular disease.
If you care about heart health, please read studies about how eating eggs can help reduce heart disease risk, and herbal supplements could harm your heart rhythm.
For more information about heart health, please see recent studies about how espresso coffee affects your cholesterol level, and results showing Vitamin C linked to lower risk of heart failure.
