News
Insufficient vitamin D supply may increase risk of pneumonia
13 January 2014
A new analysis of US intake survey data indicates that people with vitamin D deficiency may be more likely to have community-acquired pneumonia.
10 February 2013
By blocking a metabolic pathway that allows tumor cells to grow unchecked, vitamin D may play a role in providing a safe and cost-effective strategy to fight certain types of breast cancer with the poorest prognosis, new research from Spain suggests.
The in vitro study investigated molecular pathways that contribute to the growth of human breast tumor cells of the triple-negative type, a treatment-resistant form of cancer, which often proves fatal, that tends to strike younger women (1). The research identified a novel pathway that not only allows tumor cells to grow un-checked, but also explains the reduced sensitivity of these types of tumors to current therapeutic strategies. Vitamin D was found to play a role in turning off this pathway, providing the potential for a new therapy.
The researchers commented that in the future, women with triple-negative breast cancer may benefit from a treatment that includes vitamin D and some protease inhibitors. Although chemotherapy is the most effective treatment for triple-negative breast cancer, it has profound side-effects. In a further step, vitamin D therapy will have to be studied in clinical trials for its efficacy.
13 January 2014
A new analysis of US intake survey data indicates that people with vitamin D deficiency may be more likely to have community-acquired pneumonia.
7 December 2015
As part of the Food4Me pan-European project, a new sampling and analysis procedure for vitamin D has been developed. The technique enables unsupervised sampling of drops of blood from a fingertip onto a prepared card. A total of 3,778 valid measurements were made from 1,465 participants. The highest mean levels of vitamin D were found towards the end of July, whilst the lowest were towards the end of January. This is consistent with previous population survey data.
15 May 2013
Phytochemicals are biologically active compounds, found in plants in small amounts. At present, most interest in phytochemicals is focused on carotenoids and polyphenolic flavonoids, which seem to contribute to protection against degenerative diseases, such as cancer and cardiovascular disease.