Vitamin D Deficiency and Covid 19 (Coronavirus). Benefits of Vitamin D

As much as Dr Gordon loves his Zinc, I love my Vitamin D!

Being introduced to high dose Vitamin D by one of my favorite doctors, Mayer Eisenstein, MD, JD, MP, was one of the biggest contributions to my practice. I loved talking to Mayer and would seek him out at every Anti-Aging meeting to see what ‘far out‘ theory he was exploring. High dose Vitamin D was something he shared with me outside a lecture hall one day. Soon he lectured about the benefits of Vit D, showing graphs of a higher incidence of chronic disease and cancer were associated with lower Vit D levels. As you got to the higher levels of Vit D3, 60-120 ng/dl, morbidity, mortality, the incidence of chronic disease and cancer would go down. Why had I never known this before!!! This is clinically proven research done in late 90’s early 2000’s. If you google Vit D and Covid 19 in pubmed, you will find 50 articles written in the last 2 months! Approximately 500 papers a year are published on Vit D deficiency in Cancer. Vit D3 rocks. Take it!

Since my discussion with Mayer, I have used high dose Vitamin D3 in my practice with sheer delight. My favorite line to someone sick is “Take 200,000 units of Vitamin D and call me in an hour”. And In an hour, much to their surprise, my patients would confess to feeling better. A miracle! Or just yesterday a patient said, “I don’t know what that magic concoction you gave is…but I am feeling better!” A similar response came from a Covid positive patient who had severe muscle aches. An hour after taking high dose Vit D3 she was better for the first time in 3 weeks. Her doctor didn’t treat her at all, because there was “nothing to help”. She was told later treatment for covid was bedrest. This patient suffered needlessly for 3 weeks. Shame on doctors who are ignorant of the magic of nutrition and especially Vitamin D!

What Vitamin D does in the Body. How it Protects you from Covid 19

• • Vitamin D is actually not a vitamin.
  • Vitamin D is now classified as a hormone, not a vitamin, and it modulates the innate and adaptive immune response [5].
  • Vitamin D influences several immune pathways, with the net effect of boosting mucosal defenses while simultaneously dampening excessive inflammation [6,7].
  • Vitamin D deficiency is a risk factor for and/or a driver of the exaggerated and persistent inflammation of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) [8,9].
    • ARDS also known as “cytokine storm” seen in severe Covid 19 cases.
    • Many of severe Covid cases were placed on ventilators and died because of inflammation in the lung. This perhaps could have been prevented.
  • As vitamin D deficiency enhances the cytokine storm [6,7], it may be particularly lethal in patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection
  • Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with an increased risk of respiratory infections such as respiratory syncytial virus infection, tuberculosis and influenza [10,11].
  • Winter incidence of influenza closely correlates with seasonal serum vitamin D levels [12].
  • In a meta-analysis of randomized controlled clinical trial, prophylactic vitamin D reduced the risk of developing respiratory tract infections [13]. In this study, the optimal dose was between 1000 IU to 4000 IU/day and the benefit was greatest in those living at latitudes greater than 40o.
  • Vitamin D deficiency adversely affects the outcome of viral infections. There was a strong inverse correlation between UVB dose and case fatality during the 1918–1919 influenza pandemic [14].
  • “In conclusion, we found significant crude relationships between vitamin D levels and the number COVID-19 cases and especially the mortality caused by this infection. “*

What about Fear of Vit D Toxicity?**
There really isn’t any! In a 2018 University study, researchers proved clinical signs of Vit D toxicity is extremely low and definitely not lethal. This refutes what I was taught in medical school!

What should Your Vit D Level Be?
Vit D levels are most protective at 50 or above. When you are sick, however, titrate the amount of Vitamin D you take to the severity of the illness. Your vitamin D level will go high for a short period of time, but if your infection isn’t going away, you need more.

Imagine what the Covid Pandemic would have looked like if everyone had been given Vit D, Zinc, and Quercetin from Day 1? Would we have had a pandemic?

Have an Awesome Day and take your supplements!! Dr D

Lots to read below if you are still in fear of getting Covid! The more knowledge you have the less fear you will hold. Enjoy!

• • https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7202265/ The role of vitamin D in the prevention of coronavirus disease 2019 infection and mortality
  • https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29346630/ vit D toxicity
  • https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7189189/ Does vitamin D status impact mortality from SARS-CoV-2 infection?

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