In this, the first study of vitamin D and disease severity in children with asthma, levels of the vitamin in the blood of more than 600 Costa Rican children were found to be linked to markers of asthma severity, including hospitalizations, the use of inhaled steroids and total IgE levels.

Current recommendations for optimal vitamin D levels are geared toward preserving bone health - preventing rickets in children and osteoporosis in adults. However, this new study suggests that supplementation with vitamin D may provide added health benefits in the case of asthma.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/147265.php

Hi Franky - and anyone -
I have just read the stuff that you suggest and it does seem that supplementing with Vitamin D could help with asthma - but has anyone got any kind of idea how much one should take?....

Hi Redtwig

There's a good article on vitamin D on the respected WebMD site at:

http://www.webmd.com/news/20080519/s...-vitamin-d?src

This page includes the following advice:

"The current recommended daily dose of vitamin D is 200 IU for people up to age 50, 400 IU for people aged 51 to 70, and 600 IU for people over age 70.

"That's not enough, Boston University vitamin D expert Michael Holick, MD, PhD, tells WebMD. Holick recommends a dose of 1,000 IU a day of vitamin D for both infants and adults -- unless they're getting plenty of safe sun exposure.

"The Vitamin D Council recommends that healthy adults take 2,000 IU of vitamin D daily -- more if they get little or no sun exposure.

"A simple blood test -- the 25(OH)D or calcidiol test -- can tell your doctor whether your vitamin D level is low. The Vitamin D Council recommends that 25(OH)D levels be between 40 and 65 ng/mL. The U.S. National Institutes of health notes that 25(OH)D levels over 30 ng/mL are optimal, and that there is "insufficient data" to support recommendations for higher levels."

From what I have read, the general consensus amongst experts seems to be that 1,000 IU per day is a good dose to aim for from supplements.

Hope this helps

Franky

The benefits of basic nutrients in reducing the incidence and severity of asthma are discussed further at the following link:

http://www.anhcampaign.org/news/vita...sthma-symptoms

New research form the University of Pennsylvania has shown that Calcitriol, a form of vitamin D synthesized within the body, may slow the progressive decline in the ability to breathe that can occur in people with asthma as a result of human airway smooth muscle (HASM) proliferation.

Calcitrol has anti-inflammatory effects and is able to inhibit smooth muscle proliferation, thus preventing or forestalling the irreversible decline in breathing that leaves many asthmatics even more vulnerable when they suffer an asthma attack.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases...0520114657.htm