More Good News About Vitamin D
We found this great article touting even more benefits of Vitamin D.
Vitamin D fights urinary tract infections
Thursday, February 03, 2011 by: S. L. Baker, features writer
Besides protecting from cancer, obesity, autoimmune diseases and cardiovascular problems, vitamin D helps build strong bones. And scientists have found this health building vitamin has a remarkable impact on the immune system, too. Vitamin D, it turns out, is necessary for the production of anti-microbial peptides, substances that fight off infection-causing bacteria, fungi, and viruses when these pathogens try to move into organs and through mucous membranes.
In fact, previous research has shown adequate vitamin D can help prevent colds and flu as well as serious lung infections, including tuberculosis. Now Swedish researchers from the Karolinska Institute and Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm have evidence that higher vitamin D levels offer especially strong protection against another common health problem — urinary tract infections (UTIs).
In their new study, just published in the journal PLoS One, the scientists wrote: “In the light of the rapidly growing problem of resistance to common urinary tract antibiotics, we suggest that vitamin D may be a potential complement in the prevention of UTI. Determining the vitamin D status of individuals with a history of UTI may be of importance to evaluate their ability to fend off intruding bacteria.”
The research team pointed out that the urinary tract is frequently exposed to infection-causing agents and has a built-in, rapid defense system. When pathogens threaten, an antimicrobial peptide known as cathelicidin is expressed if a person has a healthy immune system. The peptide is secreted by bladder epithelial cells and protects the urinary tract from an infection.
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