Vitamin D supplements may lower blood pressure in obese older adults

Supplements vitamin D may lower blood pressure in obese older people Although taking more than the daily dose recommended by the Institutes of Medicine (IOM) does not provide additional health benefits, according to a new study published by the American University of Beirut Medical Center in Lebanon.

It is worth remembering that the IOM recommends 600 international units (IU) per day. Vitamin D deficiency is common worldwide and is associated with heart disease, immune diseases, infections and cancer. Research has linked vitamin D deficiency to an increased risk of hypertension, but evidence for the beneficial effects of vitamin D supplementation on blood pressure is inconclusive.

“Our study found that vitamin D supplementation may reduce blood pressure in certain subgroups, such as older adults, obese people, and possibly people with low vitamin D levels. High doses of vitamin D compared with the IOM recommended daily dose did not have a positive effect. provide additional health benefits,” says Ghada El-Haj Fuleikhan of the American University of Beirut Medical Center in Beirut, Lebanon.

Researchers who published their work in Journal of the Endocrine Societystudied 221 obese older adults who took vitamin D supplements of 600 IU/day or 3,750 IU/day for a year and found that the supplements lowered their blood pressure. The researchers compared the two groups and found that higher doses of vitamin D did not provide additional health benefits. Thus, they determined that obese people and people with low vitamin D levels benefited the most.