Study: Vitamin D supplementation saves lives

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — A study published online earlier this month by the American Journal of Cardiology concluded that supplementation with vitamin D conferred substantial survival benefits, specifically in patients with documented deficiency.

According to the research, evidence supported an association between vitamin D deficiency and hypertension, peripheral vascular disease, diabetes mellitus, metabolic syndrome, coronary artery disease and heart failure.

University of Kansas Medical Center researchers explored the associations between vitamin D deficiency, vitamin D supplementation and patient outcomes across 10,899 patients who were 58 years old on average. Vitamin D deficiency was associated with several cardiovascular-related diseases, including hypertension, coronary artery disease, cardiomyopathy and diabetes. Vitamin D deficiency also was a strong independent predictor of all-cause death after adjusting for multiple clinical variables.

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