Vitamin D Found to Play a Role in Heart Health

by | Aug 25, 2009 | 2009, Cardiovascular Health, Vitamin D - Heart

Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS. Studies reveal the heart healthy properties of Vitamin D.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD), including heart disease and stroke, are the first and third leading causes of death for both men and women in the United States. They account for 1 in 3 of all U.S. deaths and are expected to cost our healthcare system $473 billion in 2009. If all major types of cardiovascular disease were eliminated, U.S. life expectancy would increase by nearly 7 years (1).

Now a review of existing studies (2) has found that vitamin D deficiency may be “at the heart” of CVD. Although the researchers cite inconsistent research regarding vitamin D and blood pressure, with one study showing that 400 IU of vitamin D per day decreases blood pressure by 9% (3) and the Women’s Health Initiative showing that 400 IU per day has no effect on blood pressure in women over seven years (4), they suggest that 400 IU was not a sufficient dose to elicit any beneficial health effects.

But the researchers point to two well-established characteristics of vitamin D which may play a central role in vitamin D’s heart-healthy properties. The first is blood sugar control and diabetes which currently affects 24 million Americans at a cost of $174 billion per year to our healthcare system (5). Vitamin D positively affects insulin sensitivity, with a study out of Finland showing a 40% reduced risk of diabetes when vitamin D blood levels were above 28 nanograms/milliliter (6).

Vitamin D also helps with blood vessel function. Studies have shown that vitamin D is not only related to blood vessel stiffness (7), but also to scar tissue in blood vessels, suggesting vitamin D may help blood vessels better withstand injury (8). Finally, a study published in 2008 (9) found that diabetics taking one large dose of vitamin D (100,000 IU) had “significant improvements” in blood vessel relaxation.

Vitamin D’s third health-promoting property relates to inflammation, which is a central cause of CVD (10). A study from 2006 (11) showed that 2000 IU of vitamin D for 9 months in subjects with heart failure demonstrated “significant reductions” in inflammatory proteins involved in precipitating heart failure.

For the researchers, “it may be prudent to screen individuals who are at highest risk for vitamin D insufficiency (institutionalized elderly, osteoporotic individuals, chronically ill patients, African-American patients, especially those with CVD) and treat with vitamin D to a level of 30 ng/mL.”

Source: Wang, Thomas J., et al. “Vitamin D deficiency and risk of cardiovascular disease.” Circulation 117.4 (2008): 503-511.

© 2008 American Heart Association, Inc.

Posted August 25, 2009.

References:

  1. “Cardiovascular Disease at a Glance” posted on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.
  2. Vitamin D Deficiency and Risk for Cardiovascular Disease. 338(1), July 2009, pp 40-44.
  3. Pfeifer M, Begerow B, Minne HW, et al. Effects of a short-term vitamin D(3) and calcium supplementation on blood pressure and parathyroid hormone levels in elderly women. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2001;86:1633-7.
  4. Margolis KL. Effect of Calcium and Vitamin D Supplementation on Blood Pressure. Hypertension. 2008;52:847.
  5. “Number of People with Diabetes Continues to Increase” from the CDC Website.
  6. Mattila C, Knekt P, Männistö S, et al. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration and subsequent risk of type 2 diabetes. Diabetes Care 2007;30:2569-70.
  7. London GM, Guérin AP, Verbeke FH, et al. Mineral metabolism and arterial functions in end-stage renal disease: potential role of 25-hydroxyvitamin D deficiency. J Am Soc Nephrol 2007;18:613-20.
  8. Artaza JN, Norris KC. Vitamin D reduces the expression of collagen and key profibrotic factors by inducing an antifibrotic phenotype in mesenchymal multipotent cells. J Endocrinol 2009;200:207-21.
  9. Sugden JA, Davies JI, Witham MD, et al. Vitamin D improves endothelial function in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and low vitamin D levels. Diabet Med 2008;25:320-5.
  10. Gil, Polyunsaturated fatty acids and inflammatory diseases, Biomedicine and Pharmacotherapy 56 (2002) (8), pp. 388-396.
  11. Schleithoff SS, Zittermann A, Tenderich G, et al. Vitamin D supplementation improves cytokine profiles in patients with congestive heart failure: a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Am J Clin Nutr 2006;83:754-9.