Vitamin D3 To Prevent The Flu?

Nutrition Q&A [Moderated]
1

Hi,

I just got done listening to your recent “Great Debates” podcast. Neither of you could find much good to say about Vitamin D3. The head of nutrition at my large workplace is telling us to supplement with Vitamin D because there was a double blind study by Dr. Mitsuyoshi Urashima back in 2010 that showed a reduction in contracted flu rates in children by over 50% with supplemental Vitamin D. I’m surprised that neither of you brought it up when my nutrition director is touting a lower flu risk with supplementation.

I was wondering what your take on that study is and if I should really expect Vitamin D to really lower flu rates as this study advertises?

Thanks a ton in advance.

2

Interestingly, Urashima did another study on flu risk with a larger sample in 2014 that those getting the placebo had less infections than those getting Vitamin D. The first study statistical trickery going on, but ignoring that…the vast majority of the data - based on large data sets, not singular trials- shows that vitamin D supplementation doesn’t reduce infections. Also, I would raise an eyebrow if a head of nutrition referenced a single RCT in Japanese children to guide management in adults presumably not living in Japan.