Low Vitamin D associated with Osteoarthritis

This is not necessarily new – Framingham study found that low vitamin D was associated with with “an increased risk for progression of osteoarthritis of the knee” back in 1996. This seems to have been forgotten.  Now a new study found “Participants with adequate 25(OH)D levels reported significantly less knee osteoarthritis pain compared to participants with deficient or insufficient levels, regardless of obesity status”.

Glover TL, Goodin BR, King CD, Sibille KT, Herbert MS, Sotolongo AS, Cruz-Almeida Y, Bartley EJ, Bulls HW, Horgas AL, Redden DT, Riley JL 3rd, Staud R, Fessler BJ, Bradley LA, Fillingim RB. A Cross-sectional Examination of Vitamin D, Obesity, and Measures of Pain and Function in Middle-aged and Older Adults With Knee Osteoarthritis. Clin J Pain. 2015 Dec;31(12):1060-7.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25569220

• Obese subjects were found to have lower Vitamin D
• However, when obesity was adjusted for, low vitamin D patients had more OA knee pains

Comment :

For those interested, the framingham study is here:

Relation of Dietary Intake and Serum Levels of Vitamin D to Progression of Osteoarthritis of the Knee among Participants in the Framingham Study
Timothy E. McAlindon et al
Ann Intern Med. 1996;125(5):353-359.
http://annals.org/article.aspx?articleid=709914

In study in Calgary, Alberta, Canada found that virtually all subjects were low some part of the year if they were not on supplements. I check blood levels and they are always low. I think it as sleeping giant leading eventually to pain, weakness, osteoporosis, and falls in our elderly population.