Mind the Gap: Adequate vitamin D essential for protecting from fall injuries

01 Jun 2021 --- Vitamin D deficiency may contribute to the serious falls injuring 100,000 elderly people each day, according to a new resource by the International Alliance of Dietary/Food Supplement Associations (IADSA).

Published on IADSA’s Mind the Gap platform, the resource looks to draw attention to the importance of vitamin D levels for muscle function and balance. 

“The message of our latest Mind the Gap resource is simple: Increasing vitamin D intake is a way to help older adults keep their bones strong and reduce the risk of suffering a fall,” says Simon Pettman, executive director of IADSA. 

“With many people becoming less active as a result of lockdowns and self-isolation, the central message of this new story is more important now than ever.”

Mind the Gap is a resource initiative that “facilitates the sharing of positive stories about the benefits that nutrition offers to consumers all over the world and society at large.” 

Mind the Gap is educating people on the importance of obtaining adequate vitamin D to prevent bone health damage.The portal underscores the difference between the number of nutrients needed to optimize well-being and the quantity people actually consume. It also seeks to fill gaps in consumers' scientific knowledge while promoting real-life examples of successful national nutrition programs, says IADSA. 

Falling down: A global problem
Falls in the elderly, particularly in the over 60s population, is an endemic problem worldwide. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are 37.3 million falls each year serious enough to require medical attention. 

Research published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that one in four older people fall each year, but less than half tell their doctor. Moreover, falling once doubles a person’s chances of falling again. 

Other CDC research shows that 3 million older people are treated in emergency departments for fall injuries. Over 800,000 patients a year are hospitalized because of a fall injury, most often because of a head injury or hip fracture.

A 2018 study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society also shows that the total medical costs for falls totaled more than US$50 billion in 2015, with Medicare and Medicaid shouldering 75 percent of these costs.

Moreover, an estimated 684,000 individuals die from falls globally, of which over 80 percent are in low- and middle-income countries, according to the WHO. Medical costs for fatal and nonfatal falls in the US is estimated to have reached US$50 billion in 2015.

Driving vitamin D supplementation
The WHO recommends that people with vitamin D deficiency take regular supplements to avoid the risks associated with falling. 

The US National Institute of Aging also recommends this, saying “getting enough calcium and vitamin D can help keep your bones strong.”

The European Commission has approved health claims on this basis, granting a claim applied for by Abtei Pharma Vertriebs, stating: “Chewing tablets with calcium and vitamin D improve bone density in women 50 years and older. Thus [these] chewing tablets may reduce the risk of osteoporotic fractures.” 

Recently, NutritionInsight discussed the growing industry attention on combining vitamin D with vitamin K2 as a method for treating bone health damage with experts from IFF Health. 

Vitamin K2 and D3 have been found to work synergistically for bone health, by diverting calcium away from arteries and into bones, according to research by Kappa Bioscience.

Vitamin D supplementation has also been widely debated for its potential to reduce the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns on vulnerable people, which resulted in a UK government scheme to offer over 2.5 million people free supplements throughout the winter period. 

Moreover, a German study in February concluded that blanket vitamin D supplementation across the country could prevent 30,000 cancer deaths annually, along with related healthcare costs.  

Edited

By Louis Gore-Langton