Can Vitamin D treat coronavirus? UK scientists to test if ’sunshine vitamin’ will boost immunity
- Residents of UK have been asked to take supplements over the winter months when Vitamin D levels can go down
- This will be to boost their general health, not only to stop the deadly virus
Researchers from the Queen Mary University of London are looking for volunteers to take part in a new trial to see if Vitamin D can boost your immune system and battle against the novel coronavirus pandemic.
On joining the trial, people would be sent tablets in the post, which they have to take daily for at least six months, if a finger-prick test shows they are deficient in the "sunshine vitamin", reports BBC.
Residents of UK have already been asked to consider taking supplements over the winter months when Vitamin D levels can go down. This will be to boost their general health, not only to stop disease.
‘Sunshine vitamin’ deficiency
Due to work from home amid pandemic, we all have to spend a bit too much time indoors. Vitamin D deficiency, which is more common in older people, overweight people, and in black, Asian people, are at an increased risk of becoming very ill with the Covid-19 virus.
This might also have a profound effect on our circadian rhythms, shifting sleep patterns and causing damage to our health way more than we will even realise.
Sunlight always helps to regulate alertness and mood. We have to rely on sunlight to convert cholesterol in the skin into vitamin D, which helps build strong bones, and plays a beneficial role in our immune system.
Vitamin D supplements are very safe but taking more than the recommended amount every day can be dangerous in the long run.
Trial to test if Vitamin D treats Covid
The trial, led by researchers from Queen Mary University of London and funded by Barts Charity, will be using higher doses of vitamin D than regular supplements.
Principal investigator David Jolliffe told BBC that the trial "has the potential to give a definitive answer" to the question of whether vitamin D offers protection against the deadly virus.
"Vitamin D supplements are low in cost, low in risk and widely accessible; if proven effective, they could significantly aid in our global fight against the virus," Jolliffe added.
Meanwhile, global Covid-19 cases has topped 38.4 million, while the deaths have soared to over 1,091,240, as per the Johns Hopkins University.
As of today morning, the overall cases stood at 38,426,373 and the death toll increased to 1,091,245, the University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed in its latest update.
The US is the worst-hit country with the world's highest number of infections and fatalities at 7,911,497 and 216,734, respectively. India comes next in terms of cases at 7,239,389, while the country's death toll touched 110,586.
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Business NewsScienceHealthCan Vitamin D treat coronavirus? UK scientists to test if ’sunshine vitamin’ will boost immunity
First Published:15 Oct 2020, 04:52 PM IST
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