Study Shows “Striking” Link Between Omicron and Inadequate Vitamin D.

A new study from Israel examining the link between severe COVID-19 infection and vitamin D levels recently caught my eye. It showed a correlation between low bodily vitamin D status and catching the Omicron variant of COVID.

New data shows that the conventionally recommended vitamin D level of at least 20 nanograms per milliliter of blood are far too low, and should be at a minimum of 50. The consequence was that half the vitamin-deficient people developed severe, life-threatening illness compared to fewer than 10 percent of those who had normal levels, the newly peer-reviewed research concludes.

The study is based on data from Israel’s first two coronavirus waves before vaccines were widely available, Psychology Today explains. The data came from people admitted to hospital between April 7, 2020 and February 4, 2021—before the Omicron variant appeared. However, the coronavirus doesn’t change fundamentally enough between variants to negate vitamin D effectiveness.

Patients with a vitamin D deficiency, were 14 times more likely to have a severe or critical case of COVID-19. What’s more, the mortality rate for those with insufficient vitamin D levels was 25.6 percent, compared with 2.3 percent among those with adequate levels. The differences still applied after researchers controlled for the patients’ age, gender, and history of chronic diseases. This tells us that vitamin D modulates the immune system powerfully, helping in the fight against the Covid virus.

Vitamin D is best synthesized in human skin through direct exposure to sunlight (specifically, UV-B). It makes sense that given how the pandemic has kept many people primarily indoors for over two years, a considerable number of individuals might have fallen below the threshold for adequate vitamin levels. Levels below 50 nanograms per milliliter are believed to cause weak innate immune responses in patients hospitalized with COVID.

“For most people with inadequate sun exposure ‘the only practical way of ensuring good levels ... is vitamin D3 supplements,’ said Prof. Wright. A low vitamin D level "is surely a primary cause of severe COVID-19."