Men with low levels of vital vitamin D have a higher risk of having a heart attack, new research warns.
Previous studies have shown that the rates of heart disease-related deaths are higher at higher latitudes and during winter, when people get less sunshine, but are lower in areas where there is more sun.
Now, researchers have found further proof that getting your daily dose of vitamin D may stave off heart disease, according to the journal Archives of Internal Medicine.
Scientists agree that vitamin D, found in a healthy diet, sunlight and vitamin supplements, is vital for healthy living and strong bones, and helps reduce your risk of developing several types of cancer – and vitamin D has been shown to affect the body in ways that may influence the risk of heart attack or heart disease.
For this study, scientists looked at the medical records of 454 men who had heart attacks over a ten-year period, and compared the data with 900 men who did not have a history of heart disease. The men's diet and lifestyle factors were also noted.
They found that men with a vitamin D deficiency had an increased risk of having a heart attack, compared with those with a sufficient amount of vitamin D.
And the relationship remained significant even after looking at other factors such as body mass index, alcohol consumption, physical activity and high blood pressure.
Vitamin D deficiency has been related to an increasing number of conditions, the researchers said. These results further support an important role for vitamin D in keeping your heart healthy.
ADVERTISEMENT - Article Continues below
A heart attack occurs when an artery becomes blocked, for example by a gradual build-up of fat or a blood clot, starving the heart muscle of oxygen. If your artery is blocked for more than a few minutes, you have a heart attack – and when the heart stops pumping at all, you go into cardiac arrest and lose consciousness.
Heart attack symptoms often include chest pain or tightness, sometimes spreading to the arms, neck, back or stomach, sweating, dizziness, breathlessness, nausea and disturbed heartbeats, but sometimes there are no symptoms at all.
To find out more about heart attacks, how to know if you are having a heart attack and preventing heart attacks, Click Here.
Vitamin D levels may also play a strong role in reducing the risk of type 1 Diabetes among children, new findings reveal. To find out more, Click Here.