Until about 10 years ago, we never considered Vitamin D deficiency as a common syndrome - only rare severe cases with bone disease was in the medical books.
As the test became more available, and more studies came out, it seemed that deficiency was associated with everything from cancer to emotional disorders. But is this real?
From a recent study in the British Medical Journal, the press headlined that Vitamin D prevents respiratory infections. In actuality, the study found, yes, it did seem to, but the incidence of acute respiratory tract infection was only lower with supplementation than with placebo by 1.9% (40.3% vs. 42.2%).
In an associated editorial (BMJ 2017;356:j456 ), Alison Avenell, one of the editorial’s authors, stated that there’s not enough evidence supporting taking vitamin D for disease prevention, even though low vitamin D levels have been associated with everything from cancer to Alzheimer’s. Avenell has also spent almost two decades studying whether vitamin D can prevent bone fractures and so far she’s found no evidence there, either.
Many of the studies are based on self reporting symptoms and vitamin use. So it seems that although slightly low levels of Vitamin D may occur commonly, we really don't know if taking supplements are worthwhile. If it is, it seems the effects are minimal.
I personally do not test myself for Vitamin D. If you decide to take Vitamin D, most recommendations are that you take no more than 2000U daily. This is probably safe. Oh, and sunshine does provide natural Vitamin D!
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