A new study says that it can also minimize the risk of fractures, and it is expected to be employed as supportive therapy in future treatment plans.

Researchers studying the effects of vitamin D on Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients are certain that it can halt the severity of some symptoms.

Furthermore, according to the findings of this study, it can minimize the risk of fractures, and it is anticipated that it will be employed as supportive therapy in future treatment plans.

According to the research, vitamin D is vital for brain growth, mature brain activity, and is linked to a variety of neurological illnesses.

The authors of the review feel that the prevalence of neurological illnesses is rising as the global population grows and the average lifespan improves. According to them, the scientific community is still focused on brain ageing therapy and prevention studies.

Mental disorder

Previous research has linked low vitamin D serum concentrations to mental disorders such as depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia, as well as neurological disorders such as dementia or Parkinson’s disease. As a result, it has been proposed that maintaining appropriate vitamin D serum concentrations may help to prevent disease and enhance clinical results.

The findings of this review, according to the researchers, are of particular interest, and they wrote: “Vitamin D deficiency seems to be related to disease severity and disease progression. Additionally, fall risk has been associated with lower vitamin D levels in PD. However, while the association with motor symptoms seems to be possible, results of studies investigating the association with non-motor symptoms are conflicting.​”

Parkinson’s disease

Parkinson’s disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disease, and oxidative stress is one of the disease’s etiopathogenetic pathways or crossing sites. The significance of vitamin D in Parkinson’s disease has been extensively researched, and lower levels may play a part in the disease’s development, although the vitamin’s specific action in preventing the disease is unclear.

Vitamin D has antioxidant properties that inhibit the generation of free radicals, according to the researchers, and hence may have a neuroprotective effect, slowing the progression of neurodegenerative diseases.

 “Many attempts have been made in order to address a crucial unmet demand in the management of PD; the discovery of a drug potentially able to slow down, stop or reverse the process of neurodegeneration. As a consequence, inadequate vitamin D status could lead to a loss of dopaminergic neurons in the brain, and therefore could contribute to development of PD. Reduced concentration of vitamin D in PD patients compared to those of sex and age matched healthy controls, has been described. However, considering the positive balance between potential benefits against its limited risks. Vitamin D for PD patients will probably be considered in the near future if further confirmed in clinical studies​,” they wrote.

The supplement could be an appropriate support to pharmaceutical and rehabilitative therapy in PD patients, according to the review, although the researchers added:

“Though insufficient evidence is available to introduce vitamin D as supportive therapy in PD patients, considering its limited risks, we are confident enough to insinuate, as dietary intervention, that vitamin D supplementation would act at three different levels:​

• to benefit public health by examining its likely involvement in brain development and influence on the pathophysiology of a variety of neurological illnesses, including Parkinson’s disease. ​

• halting the progression of some Parkinson’s symptoms and ​

• Finally, given the increasing risk of falls as the condition progresses, lower the risk of fracture in Parkinson’s disease patients.

According to the reviewers, vitamin D supplementation for Parkinson’s disease patients will likely be considered in the near future if further confirmed in clinical research.

Another researcher published in the journal ScienceDirect highlighted that Vitamin D may have antiviral properties and could help protect against infections that cause respiratory illnesses.

Vitamin D deficiency is common, and patients with PD appear to be more prone to be deficient.

Vitamin D3 supplementation can improve both motor and non-motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, as well as overall quality of life. While further research is needed, vitamin D supplementation in people with PD with a reasonable and well-calculated amount of vitamin D3 can help reduce the risk and burden of COVID-19 problems.

Source: 10.3390/brainsci10090660 and 10.1016/j.inat.2021.101441

Image Credit: Getty

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