Vitamin D deficiency increases the odds of all-cause mortality by 25%, a mendelian randomization study suggests. (2022)
From the publication:
Participants: 307 601 unrelated UK Biobank participants of White European ancestry (aged 37 to 73 years at recruitment) with available measurements of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-(OH)D) and genetic data.
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Measurements: Genetically predicted 25-(OH)D was estimated using 35 confirmed variants of 25-(OH)D. All-cause and cause-specific mortality (cardiovascular disease [CVD], cancer, and respiratory) were recorded up to June 2020.
Results: There were 18 700 deaths during the 14 years of follow-up. The association of genetically predicted 25-(OH)D with all-cause mortality was L-shaped, and risk for death decreased steeply with increasing concentrations until 50 nmol/L. Evidence for an association was also seen in analyses of mortality from cancer, CVD, and respiratory diseases. Odds of all-cause mortality in the genetic analysis were estimated to increase by 25% for participants with a measured 25-(OH)D concentration of 25 nmol/L compared with 50 nmol/L.