Vitamin D can improve the strength of your muscles
Vitamin D has a huge number of health benefits, from maintaining the health of our bones and teeth, to even potential protection against diseases such as diabetes and certain types of cancer. A new study shows that vitamin D can also improve muscle strength.
Vitamin D is key to developing and maintaining healthy bones. It also has many positive effects on the immune system, endocrine glands and cardiovascular system.
Some research studies have linked vitamin D deficiency to a high risk of rectal and breast cancer, while others have found a correlation between vitamin D levels and the risk of autoimmune diseases such as type 1 diabetes and multiple sclerosis.
A new study - conducted by researchers at the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom - examined the effect of vitamin D levels on muscle strength. These findings were published in the journal PLOS One.
Analysis of the effect of vitamin D on muscle mass
Using innovative technology, researchers have been able to study both active and inactive vitamin D levels, along with their effect on muscle strength.
Vitamin D - whether in the form of D2 or D3 - is itself biologically inactive until it is activated by two enzymatic reactions: one in the liver and the other in the kidneys.
Dr. Zaki Hassan-Smith of the University of Birmingham explains the innovations of the research process in a recent study:
"Previous studies have tested inactive forms of vitamin D in the bloodstream to measure vitamin D deficiency. Here, we have been able to develop a new method to determine the numerous forms of vitamin D, in addition to extensive testing of body composition, muscle function and muscle gene expression."
The team examined vitamin D levels in 116 healthy participants aged between 20 and 74 years. They also measured the participants' body fat and net muscle mass - a measure of muscle mass obtained by subtracting the weight of body fat from the total body weight.
Nutritional supplement - vitamin D can increase muscle function
The researchers found that women who had a healthy composition and low body fat levels were less prone to high levels of inactive vitamin D - a common indicator of vitamin D deficiency.
Conversely, women with higher body fat tend to have less inactive vitamin D. While this suggests a relationship between vitamin D and body composition, the active form of vitamin D does not correlate with body fat. Instead, vitamin D levels are associated with pure matter.
People who had higher levels of lean mass and muscle mass also had higher levels of active vitamin D. This suggests that active vitamin D may help optimize muscle strength.
Dr. Hassan-Smith explains findings that reflect previous studies that suggest a link between muscle mass deficiency and low vitamin D levels:
“Looking at the numerous forms in the same study, we can say that it is a more complex relationship than we previously thought. It may be that body fat is associated with elevated levels of inactive vitamin D, but pure matter is key to elevated levels of active vitamin D. It is essential to understand the overall picture and uncertain mechanisms so that we can learn how to take vitamin D supplementation in order to increase muscle strength. "
The researchers also noted that some of the beneficial connections have not been identified in men and that future multi-stage studies are needed to confirm whether the differences observed are purely biological. Researchers plan to work with foreign colleagues in order to study the mechanism in laboratory studies and clinical trials.
"We have a good understanding of how vitamin D helps maintain strong bones, but we still need to learn more about how it works in muscles." Hassan-Smith explains: "When you look at the significant challenges facing healthcare providers around the world, such as obesity and the aging population, you can see how great the interest in optimal muscle function is."
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