- ALLERGY, RESPIRATORY
- Using Music and Sports to Improve Kids' Asthma
- Childhood Food Allergies on the Rise
- Air Quality Better in Northeast, Midwest
- ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE
- Garlic Yields Up Its Health Secret
- Traditional Chinese Therapy May Help Ease Eczema
- Alternative Treatments May Boost IVF Success
- ANIMAL CARE
- Beware of Dog Bites
- 'Comfort Dogs' Come to Emotional Rescue
- Separation Anxiety, Canine-Style
- BONES & JOINTS
- A Winning Strategy to Beat Spring Sporting Injuries
- Most Kids With Type 1 Diabetes Lack Vitamin D
- High Birth Weight Doubles Risk of Rheumatoid Arthritis
- CANCER
- Exercise Cuts Lung Cancer Risk in Ex-Smokers by 45%
- Many Ignore Symptoms of Bladder Trouble
- Drinking Green Tea May Slow Prostate Cancer
- CAREGIVING
- Hospital Volume Imperfect Gauge of Cancer Surgery Outcomes
- Omega-3 Fatty Acid May Help 'Preemie' Girls' Brains
- Most Women Struggle With Rising Health Care Costs
- CIRCULATORY SYSTEM
- High Blood Fat Levels Common in Americans
- Review Confirms Links Between Diet, Heart Health
- Secondhand Smoke Quickly Affects Blood Vessels
- COSMETIC
- What to Do If You Have Unsightly Veins
- Wrinkle Fillers Need Better Label Warnings: FDA Panel
- Study Evaluates Laser Therapies for Hair Removal
- DENTAL, ORAL
- Acid Drinks Blamed for Increase in Tooth Erosion
- Hormones May Be to Blame for Women's Cavity Rates
- Dental Implants Need More Work Than Root Canals
- DIABETES
- Fish Twice a Week Cuts Diabetics' Kidney Risks
- Out-of-Control Blood Sugar May Affect Memory
- Insulin Resistance Tied to Peripheral Artery Disease
- DIET, NUTRITION
- The Food Irradiation Story
- Go Healthy, Not Hungry for Holiday Eating
- Dark Chocolate May Lower Stroke Risk
- DISABILITIES
- Could Your Cell Phone Help Shield You From Alzheimer's?
- Review Finds Marijuana May Help MS Patients
- ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
- Green Areas Lower Health Inequities Between Rich, Poor
- FDA Faulted for Stance on Chemical in Plastics
- Air Pollution May Cause Appendicitis: Study Reveals
- EYE CARE, VISION
- High Temps Degrade Contact Lens Solution: Study
- Protein Might One Day Prevent Blindness
- Autistic Children Make Limited Eye Contact
- FITNESS
- Exercise Guards White Blood Cells Against Aging
- Research Confirms How Valuable A Healthy Lifestyle Can Be
- FDA Mandates New Warnings for Botox
- GASTROINTESTINAL PROBLEMS
- Soothing Imagery May Help Rid Some Kids of Stomach Pain
- Intestinal Bacteria Trigger Immune Response
- Bowel Prep Harder on Women Than Men
- GENERAL HEALTH
- Keep Safety in Mind While Your Kids Are Cooling Off in the Water
- Afternoon Nap Might Make You Smarter
- Reminiscing Helps Build Emotional Strength
- HEAD & NECK
- Many Children Will Outgrow Headaches
- Zen May Thicken Brain, Thwart Pain
- Ski Helmets Encouraged for All
- HEALTH & TECHNOLOGY
- Airport Full Body Scanners Pose No Health Threat: Experts
- 'Comfort Dogs' Come to Emotional Rescue
- Using Light Therapy to Silence Harmful Brain Activity
- HEART & CARDIOVASCULAR
- Fewer Heart Attacks After England Goes Smoke-Free
- Drinking Your Way to Health? Perhaps Not
- An Apple a Day May Help Keep Heart Disease Away
- INFECTIOUS DISEASE
- Poor Restroom Cleaning Causes Cruise-Ship Sickness
- More Medicinal Uses for Pomegranate
- The HPV Vaccine: Preventative Medicine or Human Sacrifice?
- KID'S HEALTH
- Frequent Feedings May Be Making Babies Fat
- Meaningful Conversations Boost Kids' Language Skills
- Soothing Imagery May Help Rid Some Kids of Stomach Pain
- MEN'S HEALTH
- Soy Linked to Low Sperm Count
- Physical Activity May Prolong Survival After Colon Cancer
- Exercise May Prevent Prostate Cancer: Study Shows
- MENTAL HEALTH
- Music Soothes Anxiety as Well as Massage Does
- Meaningful Conversations Boost Kids' Language Skills
- Memory Loss Help from Brain Supplement Prevagen
- PAIN
- Alleviating Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Are We Exercising Pain Away? Not So Much.
- Acupuncture, Real or Fake, Eases Back Pain
- PREGNANCY
- Exercise As Well As Acupuncture, May Ease Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
- Breast-Feeding Benefits Moms and Babies
- Yoga's Benefits Outweigh Risks for Pregnant Women
- SENIORS
- Tai Chi May Help Ward Off Knee Pain in Seniors
- Friends, Not Grandkids, Key to Happy Retirement
- Exercise Benefits Even the Oldest Old
Boosting Vitamin D Can Do a Heart Good
By eholistic.com Published: 03/16/2010
New research suggests that extra vitamin D could make a major difference in heart disease risk among people who have low levels of the nutrient.
Researchers from the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute in Murray, Utah, report in two new studies that vitamin D supplementation may reduce the risk of other chronic diseases, too.
"Vitamin D replacement therapy has long been associated with reducing the risk of fractures and diseases of the bone," study author Dr. J. Brent Muhlestein, director of cardiovascular research, said in a center news release. "But our findings show that vitamin D could have far greater implications in the treatment and reduction of cardiovascular disease and other chronic conditions than we previously thought."
The researchers found that patients who boosted their vitamin D levels to 43 nanograms per milliliter of blood or higher reduced their rates of diabetes, heart attack, heart failure, high blood pressure and heart disease. They were also less likely to die during the study period.
According to the researchers, a level of 30 nanograms per milliliter of vitamin D is considered normal.
"Although randomized trials would be useful and are coming, I feel there is enough information here for me to start treatment based on these findings," Muhlestein said, adding that increasing vitamin D intake by 1,000 to 5,000 international units a day may be a good idea in some cases.
The findings are scheduled to be presented Monday at the American College of Cardiology's annual meeting in Atlanta.
SOURCE: Intermountain Medical Center, press release, March 15, 2010.
Last Updated: March 15, 2010
