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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Ann Natl Acad Med Sci 2021; 57(01): 36-40
DOI: 10.1055/s-0041-1724460
Review Article

Role of Vitamin D in Risk Reduction of COVID-19: A Narrative Review

Pinki Mishra
1   Centre for Translational and Clinical Research, School of Chemical & Life Sciences, New Delhi, India
,
Rizwana Parveen
1   Centre for Translational and Clinical Research, School of Chemical & Life Sciences, New Delhi, India
,
Nidhi Bharal Agarwal 
1   Centre for Translational and Clinical Research, School of Chemical & Life Sciences, New Delhi, India
› Author Affiliations Funding None.
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Abstract

The world is in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to quarantine, public health interventions which can reduce the risk of infection and death are urgently required. This article discusses the roles of vitamin D in reducing the risk of COVID-19, and how vitamin D supplementation may be a useful risk reduction measure. Vitamin D can reduce the risk of infections through a variety of mechanisms: induction of cathelicidins and defensins that can lower the rate of viral replication and decrease the concentrations of pro-inflammatory cytokines, which are responsible for induction of inflammation, injuring lining of lungs and contributing to developing pneumonia. Evidence supporting the role of vitamin D in reducing the incidence of COVID-19 includes a) winter outbreak; b) a timeframe when concentrations of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) are lowest; c) a small number of cases in the southern hemisphere toward the end of summer; d) a vitamin D deficiency found to lead to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS); e) and a rise in case-fatality rates with increasing age and comorbid chronic diseases, both of which are associated with lower concentrations of 25(OH)D. It is recommended that people at risk of COVID-19 consider taking 10,000 IU/d of vitamin D3 for a few weeks to rapidly increase 25(OH)D concentrations, followed by 5,000 IU/d to reduce the risk of infection. Higher doses of vitamin D3 may be useful for treating people who are infected with COVID-19. To test these guidelines, randomized controlled trials and comprehensive population studies should be performed.

Keywords

COVID-19 - acute respiratory tract infection - vitamin D - 25-hydroxyvitamin D - SARS CoV-2


Publication History

Article published online:
17 February 2021

© 2021. National Academy of Medical Sciences (India). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial-License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.)

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