Vitamin D is a group of fat-soluble vitamins. Vitamin D3 and, more rarely, vitamin D2 are commercially available as dietary supplements. A new study suggests that vitamin D2 plays a subordinate role in health, while vitamin D3 is important for fighting off infections.
Contrary to popular belief, a team of researchers discovered that vitamin D2 and d3taken daily as a dietary supplement for 12 weeks, do not have the same effect: vitamin D3 stimulated in contrast to vitamin D2 certain signaling systems of the immune system, which could facilitate the defense against viral and bacterial diseases.
Prof Susan Lanham-New, from the Department of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Surrey, said: “The results show that vitamin D3 should be the preferred form for fortified foods and dietary supplements.”
Some foods are fortified with vitamin D, e.g. E.g. breakfast cereals, yoghurt and bread, but few contain the vitamin naturally (notably high-fat fish such as herring, salmon and mackerel, and to a lesser extent liver, egg yolks and dairy products). Vitamin D3 is produced naturally in the skin by exposure to the sun. Some plants and fungi produce vitamin D2.
Many people have insufficient vitamin D levels in winter. The Covid-19 pandemic may also have contributed to this as people spend more time at home.
Which: DOI 10.3389 / fimmu.2022.790444