Med Headlines - According to a study done by the National Cancer Institute, vitamin D has no beneficial effect on overall cancer mortality. One exception is colorectal cancer, which has shown a decrease in mortality with exposure to higher levels of vitamin D.

In order to find any association between cancer mortality and elevated levels of vitamin D, researchers analyzed data of 16,818 individuals, 17 years old and older. The follow up was 10 years, during which time 536 individuals died of cancer..

It was found that vitamin D has no effect on overall cancer mortality, irrespective of age, sex, or race. However, vitamin D levels of 80 nmol/l or more were associated with 72% reduction of risk of death in colorectal cancer.

The report stated, “To our knowledge, this study is the first to examine the relationship between measured serum vitamin D levels and cancer mortality for selected site and for all sites combined.”

Authors of the study point out that there is still not enough information about the risks and benefits of vitamin D for prevention of disease. “These findings must be put into the context of total diet and lifestyle. There are many risk factors other than diet for colorectal cancer, and there are many possible dietary risk factors other than vitamin D that have been linked to cancer risk.”

Source: National Cancer Institute