An initial clinical trial analysis shows that the recommended dietary vitamin D allowance in the US is currently insufficient for achieving the necessary Vitamin D levels for those with cardiac issues.
Vitamin D For Heart Health
Vitamin D is crucial for bone strength. It can also support the immune system as well as other bodily functions. The human body produces vitamin D as a response to exposure to the Sun. Certain supplements and foods can also boost the production.
Regarding vitamin D supplementation, one area of interest is how the nutrient can lead to cardiac benefits and how it may help reduce the risk of heart problems. However, it has been noted that present evidence does not support the notion that vitamin D supplementation can help reduce cardiovascular risk.
Now, researchers conducted a clinical trial and saw that the recommended vitamin D dietary allowance may not be sufficient for the necessary vitamin D serum levels.
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Insufficient Recommended Vitamin D Levels For Heart Health
The researchers behind the study posit that participants in earlier studies may not have received sufficient vitamin D doses to garner the desired response.
Currently, the recommended vitamin D dietary allowance is 600 international units (IU) for adults under 70 years old and 800 IU for adults over 70 years old. This equals 15 micrograms (mcg) and 20 mcg, respectively.
The authors wanted to look more into optimal dosing that could aid people in achieving the appropriate levels of vitamin D and see if this could help stop adverse cardiovascular issues from surfacing.
The clinical trial, which they call TARGET-Dm, involved 632 participants who had experienced acute coronary syndrome. This involves different events with decreased flow of blood into the heart.
The researchers then divided the participants into those who received typical care and those who underwent vitamin D intervention. Rather than giving the typical vitamin D dosage, the researchers checked the participants' specific levels of vitamin D and gave supplementation as necessary.
Their analysis in the first part showed that most participants needed supplementation to achieve serum vitamin D levels of over 40 nanograms per milliliter (ng/mL).
As the researchers determined the necessary dosage for participants to achieve this point, they discovered that 51% of them needed up to 5,000 to 8,000 IU, which is significantly higher than the recommended allowance. On top of this, 14.6% of participants were also found to need 10,000 IU to reach optimal levels.
The results were also not instant. It took six months of intervention for 25% of the participants to reach the optimal levels, while it took three levels for less than 65%.
Overall, the findings suggest that higher doses of vitamin D are necessary to achieve therapeutic levels. The research's next segment will focus on determining if reaching vitamin D levels beyond 40 ng/mL in the group will help boost cardiovascular disease outcomes.
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