Back to Homepage

Vitamin D And The Elderly

When it comes to the relationship between vitamin D and the elderly, you would think that most older people would know to keep their levels up, given how beneficial it is well-known to be for the human body. Its importance for the elderly is then greatly enhanced even further, given the fact that a person’s levels naturally drop as they age. It is quite surprising, then, that recent studies show many elderly people suffer from low vitamin D levels.

While low vitamin D levels or a vitamin D deficiency can cause problems for anyone, they can have a catastrophic impact on an elderly person. We can therefore only assume that the reason so many elderly people are lacking in vitamin D is because they simply don’t know how important it is.

With that in mind, allow us to give you a refresher course on the link between vitamin D and the elderly. We will show you exactly how and why it is important for elderly people to keep their vitamin D levels up, and hopefully convince you to take the issue seriously and increase your own levels.

Table of Contents

What Is Vitamin D?

Vitamin D is an essential, fat-soluble vitamin also called cholecalciferol or “the sunshine vitamin.” Needed for many vital functions in the human body, clinical studies show an average person must consume at least 10 to 20 mcg of vitamin D daily to keep their body fully healthy and functioning at an optimal level (1).

You can up your daily vitamin D intake with various foods, drinks, and supplements, and doing so offers numerous health benefits for the body.

These health benefits include reducing inflammation and the risk of getting sick, improving bone, brain, heart, and immune system health and functions, testosterone and energy levels and production, male sexual health, muscle strength, bone density, and blood sugar levels, and helping combat depression and many other mental and physical health issues.

In this article, we will solely focus on how vitamin D benefits the elderly. If you’re interested in learning more about any of its other health benefits though, we’ve previously published two articles that cover them all in great detail, which you can read here and here.

Vitamin D And The Elderly: How Does Vitamin D Benefit Seniors?

Strengthens Bones and Prevents Fractures

In the elderly, it helps prevent Vitamin D plays a vital role in the maintenance, form, health, strength, and density of bones. This is incredibly important for older people, as they naturally lose bone mass and are at a much greater risk of issues like osteoporosis, osteomalacia, and bone fractures, especially hip fractures, which can be life-threatening in many older adults. Its importance in this area is down to several of its functions.

For starters, vitamin D is essential for the absorption of calcium and phosphorus from the gut and digestive tract, with them being two of the main minerals in bones, as both are hard for the body to absorb without its presence. Balanced calcium and phosphate levels in the blood also support bone mineralization by ensuring they are incorporated into the bone matrix.

Vitamin D also stimulates osteoblast activity, which is the process responsible for forming new bone tissue, promoting bone growth and repair, and reducing the activity of osteoclasts, which are cells that break down bone. This combination of effects its ideal for preserving the health of bones for as long as possible (2).

Learn more about Vitamin D and bone health here

Enhances Muscle Function

Vitamin D enhances muscle function in multiple ways. First, as we saw above, it aids the absorption of calcium and phosphorus, which are vital for nerve signalling and muscle contractions to occur. When combined with its ability to activate the numerous vitamin D receptors (VDRs) in the muscle tissue, which, it helps to regulate muscle protein synthesis and muscle cell growth, leading to improved strength and balance.

Vitamin D and Muscle Mass Article

The efficient muscle fiber development that this promotes, particularly in type II (fast-twitch) fibers, while preventing weakness in both the muscles and the bones to which they are attached, can help reduce the risk of falls, which are a major cause of injury and hospitalization in older adults. This will all lead to older people being able to live more physical, active lives as they age (3).

Supports The Immune System

Vitamin D supports the immune system, especially the innate immune system, which is the body’s first line of defence against pathogens and illnesses. Vitamin D receptors (VDRs) are present on almost every immune cell, and vitamin D binds to these receptors, triggering the cells to activate and increase their ability to fight pathogens.

It regulates the function and production of key immune cells like T cells, macrophages, dendritic cells, neutrophils, and antimicrobial peptides like cathelicidin, which detect and combat pathogens like bacteria, viruses, and other foreign invaders. This also prevents autoimmune diseases by ensuring the immune system doesn’t become overactive and mistakenly attack the body’s own cells and healthy tissue.

Vitamin D even helps reduce inflammation, which damages the immune system. By regulating the production of inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines, it stops excessive inflammation, as well as tissue damage and other health issues. As a result, it reduces the prevalence and severity of issues common in the elderly, such as respiratory infections and various chronic diseases (4).

Improves Brain Health & Function

Vitamin D possesses powerful neuroprotective properties that enhance brain health and functions. It protects the brain from damage, inflammation, and oxidative stress, stimulates a process called neurogenesis, which promotes the growth of neurons, and improves the production of neurotransmitters like serotonin.

Did you know that Vitamin D can increase longevity? Check out our article here

This combination of effects combats conditions known to impact the elderly, such as mental decline, dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease, improves memory, mood, attention, problem-solving skills, and the ability to learn, and prevents depression and chronic conditions like multiple sclerosis. This enables elderly people to maintain their cognitive functions into their golden years (5).

Tested and Trusted
By Over 1 Million Men

Order Now