Thevitamin D, regulator of bone biology, is formed in a proportion of 90% by solar radiation, and in the remaining 10%, by diet. Against all odds,the inhabitants of hot countries, such as Spain, do not have the correct levels of the vitamin. “It is the most frequent nutritional defect in Spaniards,” said Franco Sánchez, head of the endocrinology service at Hospital Carlos III (Madrid).
? The critical level of vitamin D, according to the US National Institute of Health, is 20 nanograms per milliliter, although many doctors consider that, to prevent disease, it should be raised to 30 ?, explains Michael F. Holick, director at the Boston University Medical Center (USA).
Thedeficiency is linked, above all, to obesity, pregnancy, type 1 diabetes or autoimmune diseases, but it affects the entire population. From your point of view,new drugs are needed in Spainbecause “we do not have the optimal supplementation in the available drugs.” The same opinion has been expressed to SINC Alberto Muñoz, CSIC research professor: “those of us who take vitamin D buy it in the United States or England,” he clarifies. In these countries and in the Nordic countries, there are drugs designed to increase vitamin D levels. According to experts, in Spain there are only drugs for postmenopausal women (which also include calcium), or treatments for children.
Sun, milk and fish
Although vitamin D is formed by solar radiation, scientists advise citizens to be cautious when sunbathing, as it increases the risk of developing skin cancer. It is recommendedan exposure of 10 to 15 minutes, between ten in the morning and three in the afternoon, on hands and legs, during the summer months.
Another factor that affects the development of this vitamin is thefeeding. Thefish, themilk, themushroomsor thecod liver oilThey are foods rich in vitamin D. But ingesting too much milk is not recommended due to its saturated fats and, “the amount of fish that we would have to eat to increase the presence of this vitamin would be impractical”, Franco Sánchez has recognized.
Although the research is mainly focused on prevention, different studies are beginning to study itstherapeutic applications, such as the combination with different antitumor therapies. “Laboratory studies show thathigh doses of vitamin D kill cancer cells“said Donald L. Trump, president of the Roswell Park Cancer Institute (USA).
