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Harri Hemilä, PhD, MD

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Proponents of evidence-based medicine argue that conclusions of treatment effects should be based on controlled trials and not on observational studies. Nevertheless, based on the correlation between serum vitamin D level and infections, Ginde et al¹ proposed that vitamin D supplementation may reduce the incidence of upper respiratory tract infections.

Nutrition is associated with a wide range of lifestyle variables, and there is a great risk of residual confounding caused by inadequate adjustments for complex social and environmental exposures acting over a person’s life.² Residual confounding may explain, for example, the divergent findings in observational studies and controlled trials on vitamin E.² Therefore, great caution should be exercised when interpreting correlations between serum vitamin D levels and health outcomes.

Furthermore, certain randomized controlled trials on multivitamin supplements are relevant when considering the effect of vitamin D supplementation on respiratory tract infections. If a multivitamin supplement has . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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Association Between Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Level and Upper Respiratory Tract Infection in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey
Adit A. Ginde, Jonathan M. Mansbach, and Carlos A. Camargo, Jr
Arch Intern Med. 2009;169(4):384-390.
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Vitamin D Level, Respiratory Tract Infections, and Controlled Trials—Reply
Adit A. Ginde, Jonathan M. Mansbach, and Carlos A. Camargo, Jr
Arch Intern Med. 2009;169(15):1443-1444.
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