Blackmores Institute

Assessing clinical studies in paediatric populations – randomised controlled trials and meta-analyses – the Canadian authors of the review claim that supplementation with vitamin D (25 OH D) can reduce the rates of infection in paediatric populations as well as play a beneficial role in preventing immune disorders.
 
 “There is solid evidence that vitamin D supplementation can reduce the rates of infections in paediatric populations and there is promising data linking vitamin D deficiency to increased rates of childhood asthma and other allergic conditions,” the authors explained.
 
 According to the authors, the use of vitamin D in asthma is actively being investigated as a result of preclinical results implicating a role for vitamin D in lung growth and development of the immune system. Clinical studies also show vitamin D insufficiency is more prevalent among children with asthma, but the authors caution the use of vitamin D in the primary prevention of asthma suggesting such an intervention needs to be supported by trials including the supplementation of mothers throughout pregnancy and of their children postnatally.
 
 “Vitamin D is best known for its role as a key regulator of calcium homeostasis and bone health in both children and adults. However, it has been the subject of increasing interest in both the scientific literature and the popular press over the last couple of decades, largely because of its ‘non-classical’ actions in tissues unrelated to calcium homeostasis, particularly in the regulation of several aspects of immune system function.”
 
 Reporting that extensive preclinical and clinical literature have identified links between autoimmune conditions, such as type 1 diabetes mellitus and multiple sclerosis (MS), the authors suggests that vitamin D exerts an effect on T cell function thus limiting its potential capacity for autoimmunity.
 
 “Further strong evidence that vitamin D deficiency is a key risk factor for MS has been provided by Mendelian randomisation (MR) studies. An MR study uses known functional variants of genes to probe the causal effect of a specific variable on disease occurrence, severity, or outcome. Four single nucleotide polymorphisms were identified in genes encoding enzymes/binding proteins that influenced circulating 25OH D levels.
 
 “As these are genetic variants, their individual and collective impacts on disease represent causal effects of life-long vitamin D deficiency. Remarkably, the use of these variants in a large-scale MR study of MS (14,498 cases and 24,091 controls) provided evidence that genetic variants lowering circulating 25OH D levels strongly enhanced susceptibility to the development of disease. Moreover, poor vitamin D status may influence the age of disease onset,” the authors saidBased on the evidence for a molecular basis for the role of vitamin D in the immune system, and links between vitamin D deficiency and immune dysfunction, the authors concluded that further clinical studies on the potential benefit of vitamin D supplementation in children at risk for several immune-related disorders are required.
 
 Source:Mailhot G, et.al.: Vitamin D and immunity in infants and children. Nutrients 2020, 12, 1233; <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12051233" target="_blank">doi:10.3390/nu12051233</a>

The links between vitamin D and reducing immune related disease are backed by solid evidence according to a new review published in journal, Nutrients.

Recommended for you

Echinacea in Clinical Practice

Rethinking eye health in the digital age

Psychoneuroimmunology | Connecting the mind, brain, gut, and immune system

Siberian ginseng for mental focus