Published on March 13, 2008 at 8:13 PM
Scientists in Britain have found that vitamin D supplements may reduce the risk of developing type 1 diabetes.
In a study carried out by researchers at St Mary's Hospital for Women and Children, in Manchester it was found that children who took supplements were around 30% less likely to develop the condition than those who did not.
Type 1 diabetes is the result of the immune system destroying the pancreatic cells which produce the hormone insulin and is most common among people of European descent.
As many as two million Europeans and North Americans are affected and it is becoming increasingly common.
Experts say the number of new cases is estimated to rise by 40% between 2000 and 2010.
The scientists reviewed data from five studies examining the effect of vitamin D supplementation and found that not only did the use of supplements appear to reduce the risk, the effect was dose dependent - the higher and more regular the dose, the lower the likelihood of developing the disease.
Other research has found that people newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes have lower concentrations of vitamin D than those without the condition and type 1 diabetes is more common in countries where exposure to sunlight is lower.
Exposure to sunlight allows the body to manufacture vitamin D; it seems a child in Finland is 400 times more likely to develop the disease than a child in Venezuela.
Research has also linked low levels of vitamin D and sunlight to other autoimmune disorders, including multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis.
Pancreatic beta cells and immune cells carry receptors or docking bays for the active forms of the vitamin and it is thought that vitamin D helps to keep the immune system healthy, and may protect cells from damage caused by chemicals which control inflammation.
Experts say however that much more research is needed before a concrete association between vitamin D and type 1 diabetes can be confirmed.
Experts recommend vitamin D supplementation for up to the first five years of a child's life.
The study is published in the 'Archives of Disease in Childhood'.