Sigma Nutrition Radio #393: Vitamin D: Does Supplementation Actually Improve Health?
Jun 29, 2021
The podcast explores the impact of vitamin D supplementation on health outcomes and discusses the debate surrounding its effectiveness. It also delves into the effects of high-dose vitamin D supplementation on bone mineral density and the potential role of vitamin D in inflammatory bowel disease. Additionally, the link between vitamin D status and depression is examined, along with a critique of questionable claims in functional medicine. The hosts also have a casual conversation about a TV series and share their love for language learning and music recommendations.
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Vitamin D's Complex Role
- Vitamin D acts more like a hormone and affects hundreds of genes across many tissues.
- Its widespread receptor presence creates complex physiological effects, making outcomes hard to predict.
Vitamin D Needs Calcium for Bone Health
- Vitamin D supplementation alone often shows no fracture risk reduction unless combined with calcium.
- Effectiveness depends on raising serum vitamin D to sufficient levels, often over 50 nanomoles per liter.
Vitamin D Reduces Cancer Mortality
- Vitamin D supplementation does not reduce total cancer incidence but may lower total cancer mortality over time.
- Effects become significant after excluding early follow-up to avoid latent disease bias.