Study: Low Vitamin D Not a Cause of Disease

Some studies have found low vitamin D levels among people with illnesses such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease. But a new review of medical evidence says it’s unlikely that low vitamin D caused the diseases. Researchers looked at almost 500 studies. They fell into 2 main types. The observational studies took a look at people who had high or low levels of vitamin D in their bodies. They found higher rates of heart disease, cancer, diabetes and other diseases among people with low vitamin D. The other type of study compared people who were randomly assigned to receive vitamin D pills or placebo (fake) pills. These studies did not find any health effects for the people who received the real vitamin D pills. The only exception was for older adults, especially women. Those who took vitamin D were less likely to die during the studies.