Vitamin D Review: The Low Hanging Fruit for Human Health.

Lucy N W Mungai,Omar Anjumanara,Michuki Maina,Zanuba Mohammed,Luigi Schiavo

doi:10.1155/2021/6335681

Lucy N W Mungai, Omar Anjumanara + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/6335681

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Abstract

Vitamin D is an important hormone that is known for the regulation of calcium and phosphate metabolism. Vitamin D deficiency leads to rickets in children and osteoporosis in adults leading to poor bone mineralisation and can also lead to serious dental complications in the same population. Recent studies have shown vitamin D to work as a hormone needed not only in bone and teeth but also in other body organs from intrauterine life up to old age. It has been demonstrated that Vitamin D has various effects on biological processes that deal with cell growth, differentiation, cell death, immune regulation, DNA stability, and neuronal growth. Despite being readily formed in the body through the intervention of the sun, patients are still found to have low vitamin D levels. We review studies done to show how vitamin D works.

Highlights

90% of vitamin D comprises of cholecalciferol made through the skin, and 10% is ergocalciferol, ingested from the diet. e 7-dehydrocholesterol molecule, an intermediate metabolite in cholesterol synthesis found in the human skin, has a B ring that is broken by sunray irradiation through isomerisation to form secosteroid vitamin D3. is product is transported from the skin to the rest of the body, bound to vitamin D binding protein (DBP)
Innate immunity is a nonspecific form of immunity and has a role of sensing pathogens through pathogen-recognition receptors (PRR) which lead to a cascade of events that end up with inactivation of microorganisms by stimulation of tolllike receptors (TLRs). e adaptive immunity is a specific form of immunity and occurs with antigen presentation by dendritic cells to the antigen recognition B and T lymphocytes that led to secretion of cytokines and killing of microorganisms
Fatty liver reduced by 60% on the group on AT and vitamin D and the group on vitamin D only reduced by 22%. e combination of AT + vitamin D significantly reduced liver enzymes, anthropometric indices, and glycemic indices and improved lipid profile. e group on sedentary life style and placebo had increased fatty liver by 17.6%. ey concluded that an adequate level of plasma vitamin D was necessary to achieve the beneficial metabolic effects of aerobic training [41]

Summary

Literature Review

Deficiencies of vitamin D, vitamin A, and protein energy malnutrition (PEM) have been associated with enamel hypoplasia This condition predisposes the affected tooth to dental caries and even periodontal disease. PEM and vitamin A deficiency are associated with salivary gland atrophy, which subsequently can lead to less saliva in the mouth, predisposing the teeth to dental caries and periodontal disease. E evidence that has so far been gathered on vitamin D demonstrated that vitamin D deficiency might predispose subjects at risk to low mineral bone density or osteoporosis and osteopenia and infectious and chronic inflammatory diseases [13, 19,20,21,22]. Schroth et al, who assessed the relationship between vitamin D status and dental caries in 6 11-year-old Canadian school children, found 56.4% of children had dental caries whose presence was significantly associated with low vitamin D, poor oral hygiene, and low level of education [6]

Vitamin D and Immunity

Findings

Conclusion