The benefits of taking vitamin D are being talked about everywhere these days, and joint pain can also occur if you are deficient in vitamin D. Our doctors continue to answer your frequently asked questions, readers.
Can vit D deficiency cause joint pain and swelling?
This is the result of a study conducted at the prestigious Pauling Research Institute:
Vitamin D is essential for calcium absorption and maintaining the strength and balance of minerals. Inadequate vitamin D interferes with the absorption of calcium from the intestines, following a decrease in calcium, the body receives the calcium it needs from the bones and in this way, the bones will become soft and weak.
Vitamin D deficiency weakens muscles, part of the health and strength of our joints depends on the strength and support of your muscles, so undoubtedly joint complications and disorders will be associated with muscle weakness.
What are the signs that you are deficient in vitamin D?
- Your bones will weaken
- You will have muscle aches
- If you are deficient in vitamin D, you will get sick all the time
- Inflammation and swelling
Four signs that you are deficient in vitamin D:
Vitamin D deficiency is associated with a weakened immune system. The immune system, when exposed to vitamin D deficiency, makes a special type of T cells (a type of immune cell) that is a type of white blood cell.
This type of immune cell can:
- Your bones will weaken:
Vitamin D helps absorb calcium and phosphorus from the intestines.
In the absence of vitamin D and a decrease in blood calcium levels, due to a certain hormone, calcium is removed from the bones to compensate for the lack of calcium in the blood.
- You will have muscle aches:
Our muscle cells have special pain receptors called nociceptors, when these receptors are stimulated, they send pain signals to the brain or spinal cord. Vitamin D depletion is one of the things that can stimulate these receptors, That is, nociceptors.
- If you are deficient in vitamin D, you will get sick regularly:
Despite vitamin D, an antimicrobial protein is made that is needed to fight mucus and immune cells against viruses and bacteria. If you are deficient in vitamin D, you will often get inflammation and disease.
- Inflammation and swelling:
In the absence of vitamin D, A type of immune cell that is made up of white blood cells (a special type of T cell) is made by your immune system, which is the result of inflammation, swelling, and pain.
So people with vitamin D deficiency are more likely to have inflammatory processes that are associated with pain and inflammation.
Due to vitamin D deficiency, muscle weakness and pain and fatigue can be expected.
Vitamin D deficiency is often associated with joint pain. Taking supplements containing the right amounts of vitamin D can reduce joint pain and inflammation in a group of people. These supplements cannot reduce joint pain and swelling in people who are not deficient in vitamin D.
In other words, there are credible studies that say that people with joint pain and swelling will benefit the most from taking vitamin D supplements if they are deficient in vitamin D.
It has been proven that people over the age of 50 who are deficient in vitamin D and have pain and swelling in their joints, as their vitamin D deficiency worsens, their joint pain and discomfort increase.
Swelling and joint pain are significantly more common in people with rheumatoid arthritis, These people are deficient in blood levels of vitamin D for a variety of reasons, including taking corticosteroids.
A separate point to note is that in studies of women with joint pain and swelling in postmenopausal women, daily intake of calcium and vitamin D supplements has not been able to reduce joint pain.
Finally, vitamin D is an important substance in regulating the consumption of calcium and phosphorus in the body, the balance of calcium and phosphorus is essential for a healthy skeletal system.
In vitamin D deficiency, you need to prepare yourself for experiencing all kinds of muscle and joint pain.
Today, the anti-inflammatory properties of this vitamin have been proven. Inflammation is a process that is associated with swelling and the release of stimulants from pain terminals, so if you are deficient in vitamin D, joint pain and swelling will not be an unexpected experience.
We remind you that the dose needed to compensate for your vitamin D deficiency should be chosen only by your doctor, taking into account your age and underlying problems.