Can Vitamin D Boosts Your Immunity Against COVID 19?

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that plays a number of critical roles in our body. This vitamin plays a critical role in promoting immune response. It has both anti-inflammatory and immunoregulatory properties and is crucial for the activation of immune system defences. while it will not protect us from getting the virus if we are exposed, it could reduce the severity of the illness and help make our recovery easier by strengthening our immunity. Low levels of vitamin D have been associated with increased susceptibility to infection, disease, and immune-related disorders.

A major study in 2017 which was published in the British Medical Journal looked at vitamin D’s effectiveness against viral infections found that taking vitamin D supplements cuts in half the risk of respiratory infections caused by viruses. Another research published in the Journal of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases which found that low Vitamin D levels are linked to high levels of hepatitis B virus concentration. Keep in mind that there’s no scientific evidence that taking supplemental vitamin D can protect you from developing COVID-19. However, being deficient in vitamin D may increase your susceptibility to overall infection and disease by harming immune function.

The coronavirus and other germs get into our body through entry points that are covered with mucus membranes which are found in our nose, mouth, eyelids, lungs, and trachea (windpipe). According to the lab study at the University of Illinois found that vitamin D helps mucus membranes provide a stronger barrier to viruses by increasing the antimicrobial compounds in them.

With coronavirus pandemic being a new threat, researchers have not yet found information about vitamin D protection against coronavirus as it does against other upper respiratory viruses. But some researchers showed that Vitamin D supplements were effective to reduce mortality in older adults, who are most at risk for developing respiratory illnesses due to COVID-19.

A 2012 Spanish study uncovered the mechanism by which vitamin D strengthens immunity. The researchers looked at blood levels of vitamin D in three age groups: young (20–30), middle (31–59), and seniors (60–86). They found that seniors had lower vitamin D levels than other age groups, and their levels dropped more in the winter. It may not be possible for you to increase your sun exposure during the cold winter months. If that’s the case, take a quality vitamin D3 supplement.

By taking vitamin D naturally through sunlight, or by eating foods which are rich in vitamin D, such as (fatty fish like salmon, tuna and mackerel, and in small amounts in beef liver, eggs, cheese, and mushrooms), or by taking supplement according to your doctor’s advice, you will increase your immunity against coronavirus as it does against the flu, colds, and other upper respiratory viruses.