Vitamin D2 may cut risks of elderly falls

[Guest guest]

Colleagues, the following is FYI and does not necessarily reflect my own

opinion. I have no further knowledge of the topic. If you do not wish to

receive these posts, set your email filter to filter out any messages

coming from @nutritionucanlivewith.com and the program will remove

anything coming from me.

---------------------------------------------------------

Vitamin D2 may cut risks of elderly falls

By ls

http://www.nutraingredients.com/news/ng.asp?n=82567 & m=2nie117 & c=xeiqgoegavfxtla

16/01/2008 - A daily vitamin D2 supplement of 1,000IU may cut the number

of falls among elderly people by about 20 per cent, says a new study.

Daily supplements of the vitamin were especially effective in winter,

when sunlight levels are significantly reduced, according to results of

the population-based, double-blind, randomised controlled trial

published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

" Ergocalciferol, 1000 IU/d, added to a high calcium intake is associated

with 23% reduction of the risk of falling in winter/spring to the same

level as in summer/autumn, " wrote lead author Prince from the

Sir Gairdner Hospital, Australia.

" Thus, we propose that 25(OH)D levels averaging 21.7 ng/mL should be

considered as adequate to prevent the risk of falling owing to vitamin D

deficiency in elderly women living in the community. "

Vitamin D refers to two biologically inactive precursors - D3, also

known as cholecalciferol, and D2, also known as ergocalciferol. The

former is produced in the skin on exposure to UVB radiation (290 to 320

nm). The latter is derived from plants and only enters the body via the

diet.

Both D3 and D2 precursors are hydroxylated in the liver and kidneys to

form 25- hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), the non-active 'storage' form, and

1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25(OH)2D), the biologically active form that

is tightly controlled by the body.

Gairdner and co-workers recruited 302 community-dwelling women (average

age 77.2) years living in Perth, Australia (latitude, 32 degrees south),

and randomly assigned them to receive either 1000 IU per day of vitamin

D2, or placebo for one year. All the women also received daily calcium

citrate supplements (1,000 mg). The women all had baseline blood levels

of 25(OH)D of less than 24 nanograms per millilitre, and reported a

history of previous falls.

After 12 months of supplementation, the researchers report a

significantly more falls in the placebo group than in the vitamin D2

group (62.9 versus 53 per cent, respectively).

Moreover, the risk of falling in winter, when sunlight levels are at

their weakest, was significantly reduced as a result of vitamin D2

supplementation, compared to placebo - the risk of having a first fall

in winter was 25.2 per cent for D2, compared to 35.8per cent in the

placebo group.

" When those who fell were grouped by the season of first fall or the

number of falls they had, ergocalciferol treatment reduced the risk of

having the first fall in winter and spring but not in summer and autumn,

and reduced the risk of having one fall but not multiple falls, " wrote

the authors.

The results are also interesting given recent questions over the

efficacy of D2 versus D3. Indeed, several studies have reported that

vitamin D2 is between 30 and 50 per cent less effective as the D3 form

in maintaining blood levels in humans.

" It should be noted that our study used ergocalciferol rather than

cholocalciferol, " wrote Prince and co-authors.

" Ergocalciferol has been reported to be less potent, unit for unit, in

maintaining 25OHD levels in the circulation; therefore, the effect of

vitamin D3 on reduction of falls could be greater. "

However, a recent study, published in the Journal of Clinical

Endocrinology & Metabolism, reported that supplementation with both

forms produced similar results.

Source: Archives of Internal Medicine

14 January 2008, Volume 168, Issue 1, Pages 103-108

" Effects of Ergocalciferol Added to Calcium on the Risk of Falls in

Elderly High-Risk Women "

Authors: R.L. Prince, N. Austin, A. Devine, I.M. Dick, D. Bruce, K. Zhu

--

ne Holden, MS, RD < fivestar@... >

" Ask the Parkinson Dietitian " http://www.parkinson.org/

" Eat well, stay well with Parkinson's disease "

" Parkinson's disease: Guidelines for Medical Nutrition Therapy "

http://www.nutritionucanlivewith.com/