Studies have shown that low levels of vitamin D are linked to worse heart health. But you won’t believe how much getting enough vitamin D can help!
A research abstract (Abstract 4382525) presented at the 2025 American Heart Association Scientific Sessions has revealed for the first time how much getting just enough vitamin D can help prevent a heart attack.
The study included 630 people with acute coronary syndrome who had had a previous heart attack. Each person in the active group took enough vitamin D to reach an optimal level for heart health of 40-80 ng/mL.
Surprisingly, over 85% of the people in the study had levels of vitamin D below 40 ng/mL. Half the people in the study needed more than 5,000 IU of vitamin D just to get their levels up to where they should be.
People in the study were divided into two groups: the first received standard care, and only the second received the vitamin D. The study lasted almost 4 years.
Although 18.4% of the heart attacks, heart failure hospitalizations, strokes or death occurred in the standard care group versus only 15.7% in the vitamin D group, the difference did not reach significance.
But, when the researchers looked specifically at heart attacks, they found a 52% lower risk in the vitamin D group.
This study suggests that making sure you have optimal levels of vitamin D could be an important strategy for preventing a second heart attack.
More research is needed because research abstracts have not yet been peer-reviewed or published.