Blog

Aug 31, 2023

Vitamin D deficiency linked to loss of muscle strength

Staying Healthy Having a low level of vitamin D greatly

Staying Healthy

Having a low level of vitamin D greatly increases a person's risk of age-related loss of muscle strength (known as dynapenia), a major risk factor for falls, a new study suggests.

The study, published online Sept. 15, 2022, by the journal Calcified Tissue International and Musculoskeletal Research, analyzed data from more than 3,200 people ages 50 and older with no previous dynapenia. Researchers tracked them for four years as part of the English Longitudinal Study of Aging, a long-term study that began in 2002. Participants' vitamin D levels were measured with blood tests at the start and categorized as sufficient (defined as more than 50 nanomoles per liter, or nmol/L), insufficient (30 to 49 nmol/L), or deficient (less than 30 nmol/L). After four years, grip strength was evaluated as a measure of participants' overall muscle strength.

People deficient in vitamin D were 70% more likely to develop dynapenia by the end of the study than those with normal vitamin D levels. The results make sense, researchers said, since vitamin D is known to help with muscle repair and contraction. People can avoid vitamin D deficiency through careful sun exposure, eating foods rich in the vitamin, or taking a supplement.

Image: © Udra/Getty Images

Maureen Salamon, Executive Editor, Harvard Women's Health Watch

Toni Golen, MD, Contributor; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing

Hope Ricciotti, MD, Editor in Chief, Harvard Women's Health Watch

As a service to our readers, Harvard Health Publishing provides access to our library of archived content. Please note the date of last review or update on all articles.

No content on this site, regardless of date, should ever be used as a substitute for direct medical advice from your doctor or other qualified clinician.