Related to Children's Health Vitamin D Might Help Kids With Eczema Researchers saw some improvement in winter-related symptoms By Mary Elizabeth Dallas FRIDAY, Oct. 17, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- Daily vitamin D supplements might help children with eczema that gets worse in the winter, a new study suggests. When eczema, a chronic inflammatory skin disorder, flares up in the winter it's known as winter-related atopic dermatitis. Researchers found vitamin D significantly reduced the uncomfortable symptoms associated with this disorder. "While we don't know the exact proportion of patients with atopic dermatitis whose symptoms worsen in the winter, the problem is common," said study leader Dr. Carlos Camargo, of Massachusetts General Hospital's department of emergency medicine. "In this large group of patients, who probably had low levels of vitamin D, taking daily vitamin D supplements -- which are inexpensive, safe and widely available -- proved to be quite helpful," he said in a hospital news release.
A common treatment for severe atopic dermatitis is the controlled use of ultraviolet light, which stimulates production of vitamin D in the skin, the study's authors said. In conducting their research, they explored the possibility that vitamin D deficiency -- the so-called sunshine vitamin -- could help explain why the condition often gets worse during winter. The study, conducted with the help of scientists at the Health Sciences University of Mongolia, involved 107 Mongolian children between the ages of 2 and 17 from nine outpatient clinics in the capital city of Ulaanbaatar. All of the children had atopic dermatitis that flared up in cold weather or during the transition from fall to winter. The participants were randomly divided into two groups: those who received a 1000 IU daily dose of vitamin D and those who received a placebo. The children's symptoms were evaluated when the study began, and one month later when it ended. The children's parents were also asked whether or not they felt their child's skin condition had improved.
The study, published in the October issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, revealed the children who received the vitamin D supplements had an average 29 percent improvement in their symptoms. In contrast, the children who received the placebo had a 16 percent improvement. Although the study authors did not determine whether or not the children in the study had a vitamin D deficiency when the study began, they pointed out that another larger study involving Mongolian children found 98 percent had low levels of vitamin D. The researchers said it was very likely the children in their study also had this deficiency. Although more studies are needed to determine if vitamin D could help adults and children with year-round symptoms of atopic dermatitis, the researchers concluded children with symptoms that get worse during the winter months could try a vitamin D supplement for a few weeks to see if their condition improves. They advised parents to discuss the benefits of vitamin D and the findings with their child's doctor.
A recent study has confirmed that supplementation with vitamin D significantly reduces the severity of atopic dermatitis in as little as four weeks.1 Atopic dermatitis is a chronic, moderate-to-severe form of eczema, a skin disease that affects almost 18 million Americans of all ages.2 In general, people suffering from this condition have had very few effective treatment options, and these address only the symptoms while doing nothing to combat the disease itself. But now, a better understanding of the underlying causes of atopic dermatitis has opened the door to a targeted treatment that can address a critical factor behind atopic dermatitis flares. Symptoms of atopic dermatitis can range from dry, itchy skin and red rashes to severe flare-ups that produce open, weeping or crusted sores that may become infected with bacteria.2,3 These infections can progress to produce eye or eyelid problems, which can lead to sleep disruptions. cases may even require chronic drug therapy.3
This complex disorder has both genetic and environmental roots and appears to be related to allergic disorders and asthma, both of which involve abnormal Scientists have discovered that people with atopic dermatitis have a dangerously high percentage of the common bacteria Staphylococcus aureus onStaph organisms abound on human skin surfaces and are normally mixed with (and to some extent controlled by) other, less dangerousBut in people with atopic dermatitis, S. aureus grows out of control, constituting as much as 90% of the organisms found on the skin.1,5 Studies show that an increase in skin colonization with S. aureus is one of the most powerful triggers for atopic dermatitis “flares,” the period of time when the condition gets worse, which is then followed by a period of remission. In addition, it has been found that areas of affected skin in atopic dermatitis patients contain significantly higher densities of S. aureus.1,6 Typically, the body’s immune system produces its own natural antibiotic called cathelicidin, which targets several microorganisms,
including S. aureus.1 But people with atopic dermatitis have low levels of cathelicidin. A key, then, to containing the out-of-control colonization of S. aureus is to boost levels of cathelicidin. One of the best ways to do that is with supplemental vitamin D. Previous studies have shown that vitamin D levels correlate strongly, and inversely, with the severity of atopic dermatitis, so higher levels mean less severe disease, and vice versa.7-9 Studies have also suggested that vitamin D supplementation has beneficial effects on atopic dermatitis symptoms.1,10-12 One of the reasons for these benefits is that the production of cathelicidin is strongly dependent upon vitamin D.13 In fact, supplementation with vitamin D was recently shown to boost cathelicidin levels, both in patients with atopic dermatitis and, to a lesser degree, in those with healthy skin.14 Now, a study published in Journal of the Medical Association of Thailand has confirmed previous findings that vitamin D supplementation
significantly reduces S. aureus colonization, providing a key insight into how supplementation may prevent flares of the disease.1 Let’s take a look at the details of this exciting study. The patients included in this recent study all had mild-to-moderate atopic dermatitis as determined by a standard Scoring for Atopic Dermatitis (SCORAD) scale. At the beginning of the study, the researchers obtained skin cultures to determine the total number of S. aureus organisms. They also recorded the subjects’ SCORAD score, took automated readings of skin redness and skin moisture, and took digital photographs of skin lesions. Then, for the next four weeks, the patients received either 2,000 IU per day of vitamin D or a The results were impressive. By the end of the study, the average SCORAD score among supplemented atopic dermatitis patients was about 56% lower compared with baseline.1 Supplemented subjects also experienced reductions in skin redness (erythema index) compared with placebo, although no significant
change in skin moisture content was found. Importantly, while the placebo group experienced an increase in colonization with S. aureus, the subjects taking vitamin D had an approximate 46% reduction in S. aureus colonization.1 The decreases of both SCORAD score and skin colonization were shown to be correlated inversely with vitamin D levels: the higher the vitamin D level, the lower the rate of Staph colonization, and the lower (less severe) the SCORAD scores. This study showed that daily supplementation with 2,000 IU of vitamin D for four weeks significantly reduced the severity of atopic dermatitis symptoms, and also reduced the degree of colonization with S. aureus, an organism known to be a factor in atopic dermatitis flares. Vitamin D is already known to be safe at the doses used in this study, and no adverse effects were found during the study period. Antimicrobial Properties of Vitamin D As many as 1.2 million US hospital patients may be infected each year with a virulent staph infection that is resistant to antibiotics.
A 2007 study showed this rate was almost ten-times greater than previous estimates.16 Each year, about 18,000 Americans die from drug-resistant staph infections.17 Vitamin D helps produce natural factors that kill staph and other microbes. This makes it especially important for older people and those going to a hospital to supplement with this low-cost nutrient. As more antibiotic strains of bacteria emerge, the value of vitamin D in protecting against microbial infection markedly increases.18 Atopic dermatitis, a moderate-to-severe form of eczema, persists into adulthood in more than 10% of Americans.15 Treatment options have long been limited to topical creams and oral antihistamines to reduce symptoms, but they do nothing to change the underlying conditions. The discovery of cathelicidins, vitamin D-dependent natural antibiotics, has led to an improved understanding of atopic dermatitis. It has also led to the realization that vitamin D supplementation might be an appropriate way to control atopic dermatitis.