Vitamine D tegen eczeem*
Uit een kleine studie blijkt dat vitamine D atopisch eczeem, de meest voorkomende vorm van eczeem kan bestrijden. Atopische eczeem gaat vaak gepaard met een rode, erg jeukende, vochtige uitslag van de huid met blaasjes, papels, puistjes, kloofjes, schilfers en korstjes en kan aanleiding zijn tot andere huidinfecties. Al eerder werd aangetoond dat bepaalde defecten in het immuunsysteem een negatieve invloed hebben op het vermogen van de huid het peptide cathelicidine te produceren. Cathelicidine heeft een beschermend effect op infecties. Bij veel huidaandoeningen, waaronder eczeem, geeft een tekort aan deze stof een verhoogde infectiegraad. In deze studie kregen 14 patiënten met matige tot ernstige atopisch eczeem en 14 gezonde personen drie weken lang dagelijks 100 mcg vitamine
D(3). De suppletie met vitamine D leidde tot flink herstel van de productie van cathelicidine in de huid. Ook in een normale huid bleek vitamine D suppletie de productie van dit peptide
enigszins te verhogen. Er werden geen bijwerkingen gezien van de suppletie met vitamine D.
Use of oral vitamin D supplements may help prevent eczema
A study led by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine suggests that use of oral Vitamin D supplements bolsters production of a protective chemical normally found in the skin, and may help prevent skin infections that are a common result of atopic dermatitis, the most common form of eczema.
The study - led by Richard Gallo, M.D., Ph.D., professor of medicine and chief of the Division of Dermatology at the UCSD School of Medicine and the Dermatology section of the Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, and Tissa R. Hata, M.D., associate professor of medicine at UC San Diego - found that use of oral vitamin D appeared to correct a defect in the immune systems in patients with this skin disease. Their findings will be published in the Journal of Allergy & Clinical Immunology
The researchers studied a small number of patients with moderate to severe atopic dermatitis, a chronic skin disease that affects 10 to 20 percent of children and one to three percent of adults. Atopic dermatitis is characterized by areas of severe itching, redness and scaling. Over time, chronic changes can occur due to constant scratching and rubbing. The condition puts patients at increased risk for skin infections by Staph aureus and the herpes and small pox viruses.
It had previously been shown that defects in the immune system interfere with the skin's ability to produce a peptide called cathelicidin, which is protective against microbial invasion. In many skin diseases, including eczema, a deficiency of cathelicidin correlates with increased infection.
Study participants (14 with atopic dermatitis and 14 without) were all given 4000 IUs of oral Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) per day for 21 days. Skin lesions were biopsied before and after the 21-day period. The researchers found that oral vitamin D use by the patients appeared to correct the skin's defect in cathelicidin.
"These results suggest that supplementation with oral vitamin D dramatically induces cathelicidin production in the skin of patients with atopic dermatitis," said Hata. "It also slightly elevated its production in normal skin in this study."
However, the researchers caution that this was a small study and that further research is needed to evaluate the long-term effects of vitamin D supplementation, and to determine if this may be an adequate way to prevent infections in patients with atopic dermatitis.
In the past several years, vitamin D deficiency has been linked to increased rates of multiple cancers and diabetes, among other diseases, notably in studies published by UC San Diego researcher, Cedric Garland, Dr. P.H., professor with Moores UCSD Cancer Center and the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine at UC San Diego.
http://www.ucsd.edu/ (November
2008)
