OpEdNews - Article: Vitamin D Prevents Common Cold and Flu

Common Cold Vitamin D Flu Jeffrey Dach MD
Vitamin D Prevents Common Cold, and Flu by Jeffrey Dach MD, Original article here.

Are you sneezing, with a runny nose, and aches and pains? You may have the common cold. Rather than go through a week of misery, better to prevent Colds with Vitamin D. A new study published Feb 23, 2009, in the Archives of Internal Medicine showed that Vitamin D prevents the common cold. In this study, patients with low vitamin D levels had 40% more flu episodes.

These findings suggest Vitamin D helps the immune system fight off viral illnesses like the flu. Vitamin D is actually a hormone which attaches directly to cellular DNA and is involved in prevention of autoimmune diseases. Low vitamin D levels have been linked to multiple sclerosis, heart disease, and increased rate of cancer. In fact, low vitamin D levels have been associated with increased over-all mortality. Read more about Vitamin D, click here:

References and Links

http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/169/4/384 Association Between Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Level and Upper Respiratory Tract Infection in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Adit A. Ginde, MD, MPH; Jonathan M. Mansbach, MD; Carlos A. Camargo Jr, MD, DrPH Arch Intern Med. 2009;169(4):384-390.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090223221242.htm
Vitamin D Deficiency May Increase Risk Of Colds, Flu ScienceDaily (Feb. 24, 2009) "" Vitamin D may be an important way to arm the immune system against disorders like the common cold, report investigators from the University of Colorado Denver (UC Denver) School of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Children's Hospital Boston.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/02/24/health.vitamind.cold/
Vitamin D may protect against common cold. Deficiency of vitamin D is common, particularly in winter. People with low blood levels of vitamin D more likely to report a recent cold By Theresa Tamkins,Vitamin D may protect people -- especially those with asthma and other chronic lung conditions -- from colds and other respiratory tract infections, according to the largest study to date to look at the link. People with low blood levels of vitamin D were more likely to have had a recent cold.

http://health.msn.com/health-topics/cold-and-flu/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100233622
Too Little Vitamin D May Mean More Colds and Flu
By Alan Mozes, HealthDay Reporter MONDAY, Feb. 23 (HealthDay News) --
Forget the apple. The largest study of its kind to date shows that vitamin D each and every day is what will keep the doctor away when it comes to the common cold or the flu.

http://jeffreydach.com/2007/06/10/vitamin-d-deficiency--by-jeffrey-dach-md.aspx
Vitamin D Deficiency, the Ignored Epidemic of the Developed World
by Jeffrey Dach MD

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author Jeffrey Dach MD

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