A study revealed that Vitamin D does not prevent diseases, unlike what most of the people believe.
A new study conducted by the researchers have found out that taking vitamin D supplements do not help prevent disease for the majority of people.
The result of the new study was published Wednesday in the British Medical Journal.
It is a fact that there are people who may seek out the benefits of sunshine in bottle form and reach for supplements of vitamin D during the bleak winter months of short days and cloudy skies, when source of the said vitamin from the sun is lacking.
Vitamin D, which is made naturally by the skin when exposed to sunlight, is needed in a person’s body to maintain healthy bones, strong teeth and muscles; and to prevent these body parts from becoming brittle and at risk of fracture.
However, a review of evidence conducted by the researchers from clinical trials on the impact of vitamin D supplements has discovered that attempting to get vitamin D through supplements is not so beneficial.
“We conclude that current evidence does not support the use of its supplementation to prevent disease,” said Mark Bolland, associate professor of medicine at the University of Auckland, New Zealand.
Bolland was the leader of the team who conducted the research, together with Alison Avenell, a clinical chair in health sciences research at the University of Aberdeen.
According to the study team, clinical trials on taking vitamin D pills have failed to show that the supplements reduce the risk posed by falls and fractures to bones and muscles.
However, the researchers recognize that it may be beneficial in people who are at high risk of those conditions, such as people living in nursing homes and darker-skinned people living in colder climates.
Researchers recommend supplements for those who are at risk during autumn and winter. They also suggest getting advice from medical practitioners on how best to get vitamin D naturally.
“Vitamin D will protect people who are at high risk,” Avenell said.
According to the National Institutes of Health, good sources of this vitamin during times of less sunshine are oily fish, egg yolks, red meat and liver, to keep levels high inside the body — which not everyone can achieve adequately.