Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS.
The term “cardiometabolic disorders” has recently been coined to encompass three different diseases: cardiovascular disease (costing $475.3 billion per year to treat) (1), type 2 diabetes (costing $174 billion) (2), and metabolic syndrome, which affects 1 in 4 Americans, increases medical costs per patient by 20% (3), and is “the costliest condition you’ve never heard of” (4)).
With a total cost to our healthcare system of nearly three-quarters of a trillion dollars per year, it is paramount to find ways to decrease risk factors for cardiometabolic disorders. Now a new study (5) has found that keeping vitamin D bloods at healthy levels can significantly improve heart health.
In the study, researchers conducted a review of published medical literature concerning vitamin D blood levels and the risk of cardiometabolic diseases. They identified 28 studies consisting of 99,745 patients. They found that vitamin D plays a significant role in heart health. The highest blood levels of vitamin D (more than 29.2 nanograms/millilter) were shown to reduce cardiometabolic risk factors by 43%, compared to the lowest vitamin D blood levels (less than 17.8 ng/mL). When they separated the risk reductions by each condition, it translated to a 33% reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, 55% reduced risk of type 2 diabetes, and 51% reduced risk of metabolic syndrome.
When attempting to explain the health-promoting effects of vitamin D, the researchers pointed to how “low levels of vitamin D may result in higher vascular calcification”, how vitamin D can help maintain healthy levels of inflammation by controlling levels of proteins called cytokines, and how vitamin D can help maintain healthy blood pressure levels (6).
The researchers concluded that “High levels of vitamin D among middle-age and elderly populations are associated with a substantial decrease in cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome”. They then recommended that “If the relationship proves to be causal, interventions targeting vitamin D deficiency in adult populations could potentially slow the current epidemics of cardiometabolic disorders.”
Source: Parker, Johanna, et al. “Levels of vitamin D and cardiometabolic disorders: systematic review and meta-analysis.” Maturitas 65.3 (2010): 225-236.
© 2009 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
Posted April 8, 2010.
Reference:
- “Cardiovascular Disease Cost” posted on The American Heart Association website.
- “Number of People with Diabetes Continues to Increase” from the CDC Website.
- Curtis LH. Costs of the Metabolic Syndrome in Elderly Individuals Findings from the Cardiovascular Health Study. Diabetes Care October 2007 vol. 30 no. 10 2553-2558.
- “The Costliest Condition You’ve Never Heard Of” posted on the Medical News Today website.
- Parker J. Levels of vitamin D and cardiometabolic disorders: Systematic review and meta-analysis. Maturitas 2010; 65(3): 225-236.
- E. Giovannucci, Vitamin D and cardiovascular disease, Curr Atheroscler Rep 2009; 11: 456–461
