Table 1.

Diseases included in this study along with a brief overview of the mechanisms of vitamin D for each disease and a listing of a few observational studies and clinical trials in support.

Disease	Mechanisms	Observational studies	Clinical trials
Cancer	Effects on cells, angiogenesis, and metastasis10	Breast and colorectal cancer incidence11; survival12	Breast and all-cancer incidence13
CVD	Effects on serum cholesterol levels, arterial stiffness, insulin resistance, hyperglycemia, and increased incident metabolic syndrome are potentially plausible mediators8	Refs.14,15	Effect on CVD risk factors16
Dementia	Regulation of calcium homeostasis, clearance of amyloid-β peptide, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, and possible protection against the neurodegenerative mechanisms associated with AD17	Incidence18
DM	Improves insulin sensitivity and secretion, mainly via its anti-inflammatory properties19	Incidence20; meta-analysis21
Falls and fractures	Reduces bone mass loss by reducing inflammation22; maintains cognition23; helps maintain muscle mass24	Ref.25	Ref.26
MS	Effects on regulatory T and B cells27	Ref.28
Respiratory infections	Induction of cathelicidin and defensins29; strengthens adaptive and innate immune system30	Pneumonia31	Influenza32,33; ARI34

AD, Alzheimer disease; ARI, acute respiratory tract infection; CVD, cardiovascular disease; DM, diabetes mellitus; MS, multiple sclerosis.