A recent study published in the MDPI or Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute found that people taking vitamin D daily and who have at least 50 ng/mL in their blood have a mortality rate of zero for COVID-19.
“Mortality rates from clinical studies were corrected for age, sex, and diabetes. Data were analyzed using correlation and linear regression. Results: One population study and seven clinical studies were identified, which reported D3 blood levels preinfection or on the day of hospital admission. The two independent datasets showed a negative Pearson correlation of D3 levels and mortality risk (r(17) = −0.4154, p = 0.0770/r(13) = −0.4886, p = 0.0646). For the combined data, median (IQR) D3 levels were 23.2 ng/mL (17.4–26.8), and a significant Pearson correlation was observed (r(32) = −0.3989, p = 0.0194). Regression suggested a theoretical point of zero mortality at approximately 50 ng/mL D3.”
According to the paper, without calcium supplementation even very high vitamin D3 supplementation does not cause vascular calcification. The authors say that vitamin D3 supplementation in the range of 4000 to 10,000 units (100 to 250 µg) is needed to generate an optimal 40–60 ng/mL level. Supplementing vitamin D with approximately 200 µg of vitamin K2 is recommended by the authors of the paper to help filter calcium into the bones instead of the blood.
Another recent study found that among COVID-19-positive patients, the group with vitamin D levels of more than 30 ng/ml had significantly lower hospital stays, and no difference was found among the groups in terms of age and gender distribution.
According to the paper, elevated vitamin D levels could even decrease COVID-19 PCR positivity.
Many media outlets, as well as politicians, have been highlighting the higher death rate from coronavirus for black Americans than White and Asian Americans, but differing vitamin D levels and obesity are the likely culprits.
Furthermore, according to the CDC the death rate from diabetes is highest among non-Hispanic black adults and lowest among non-Hispanic white adults. During 2004–2017, the death rate decreased from 438.3 per 100,000 to 391.1 among non-Hispanic white adults, from 602.0 to 485.7 among Hispanic adults, and from 804.3 to 607.0 among non-Hispanic black adults.
Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) III shows that non-Hispanic blacks are at more than 10 times greater risk than non-Hispanic whites of being in the lowest quartile of 25(OH) vitamin D serum measurements. Hispanics have 2.5 times the risk, and other races have 3 times the risk.
