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Vitamin D deficiency: what a pain it is

PainSci » bibliography » Holick 2003
updated
Tags: chronic pain, muscle pain, etiology, treatment, nutrition, self-treatment, vitamin D, pain problems, muscle, pro

Two articles on PainSci cite Holick 2003: 1. The Complete Guide to Trigger Points & Myofascial Pain2. Vitamin D for Pain

PainSci notes on Holick 2003:

In this editorial for Mayo Clinic Proceedings, Holick explains that “Vitamin D deficiency causes muscle weakness and muscle aches and pains in both children and adults.” In reference to Plotnikoff et al, who studied the relationship between D and pain directly and produced quite dramatic data, “The association between nonspecific musculoskeletal pain and vitamin D deficiency was suspected because of a higher prevalence of these symptoms during winter than summer. The study patients ranged in age from 10 to 65 years, and all had symptoms of vitamin D deficiency. Of the more than 90% of patients who were medically evaluated for persistent musculoskeletal pain 1 year or more before screening, none had been tested previously for vitamin D deficiency.”

original abstract Abstracts here may not perfectly match originals, for a variety of technical and practical reasons. Some abstacts are truncated for my purposes here, if they are particularly long-winded and unhelpful. I occasionally add clarifying notes. And I make some minor corrections.

In the current issue of the Mayo Clinic Proceedings, Plotnikoff and Quigley report that 100% of African Americans, East Africans, Hispanics, and American Indians in their Minnesota-based study had deficient levels of vitamin D; overall, 93% of the 150 children and adults in the study, which included broad categories of ethnic groups, were vitamin D–deficient. Is this unexpected? No. Is this newsworthy? Yes.

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