Vitamin D3 supplementation reduces risk of second heart attack, study finds
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People with a history of cardiac arrest could protect themselves from future risks with a simple daily habit.
A study conducted by Intermountain Health in Salt Lake City, Utah, found that supplementing with vitamin D3 can significantly reduce the risk of a second heart attack in those who have already suffered one.
In a large randomized clinical trial, researchers monitored patients’ vitamin D blood levels, while adjusting doses to “achieve optimal levels,” according to a press release.
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They found that treating heart attack patients with higher doses of vitamin D3 reduced the risk of a second heart attack by half.
The findings were presented Sunday at the American Heart Association’s 2025 Scientific Sessions in New Orleans.
Supplementing with vitamin D3 can cut the risk of a repeat heart attack in half, a new study suggests. (iStock)
The study, called the TARGET-D trial, included 630 patients between April 2017 and May 2023 who had suffered a heart attack in the previous month. Eighty-five percent had insufficient levels of vitamin D3.
The participants were separated into two groups: one received targeted vitamin D3 treatment and the other did not. The goal was to increase blood levels to more than 40 nanograms per milliliter (40 ng/mL).
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Participants in the vitamin D treatment group had their blood levels checked once a year to see if they were above 40 ng/ml.
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More than half of them required an initial dose of 5,000 international units (IU). (Most adults are advised to take 600 to 800 IU of vitamin D per day to maintain a level of approximately 30 to 50 ng/mL.)
Participants were followed until March 2025 to monitor their cardiovascular health. Of the 630 patients, 107 experienced a major cardiac event.
Vitamin D3 has been linked to improved cardiovascular health in previous studies. (iStock)
Lead researcher Heidi May, Ph.D., a cardiovascular epidemiologist at Intermountain Health, said in a statement that no adverse effects were observed after administering higher doses of vitamin D3.
“We are excited about these results, but we know we still have work to do to validate these results,” she said.
“Normal vitamin D values have been shown to decrease coronary heart disease, heart failure and stroke.”
According to May, up to two-thirds of people worldwide have low levels of vitamin D.
Sun exposure is the most common natural method of getting sufficient amounts of the vitamin, but it has declined due to lifestyle changes in recent years, according to Intermountain.
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Dr. Bradley Serwer, a Maryland-based interventional cardiologist and chief medical officer of VitalSolution, who was not involved in the study, said it has been “long recognized” that maintaining optimal vitamin D levels provides “substantial cardiovascular benefits.”
“Previous studies have correlated low serum vitamin D levels with a high risk of hypertension, coronary heart disease, stroke and heart failure,” he told Fox News Digital.
Further research is needed to determine the effectiveness of vitamin D supplementation in low-risk populations. (iStock)
However, previous research has failed to demonstrate the effectiveness of vitamin D supplements in reducing heart attack risk, according to Serwer.
“In particular, these studies often prescribed a standard replacement dose that was often insufficient to restore healthy vitamin D levels,” he noted.
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These new results of a 50% reduction in the risk of a second heart attack, although encouraging, concerned higher-risk patients and may not apply to low-risk populations, the cardiologist noted.
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“More research is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of vitamin D supplementation in low-risk individuals,” he said. “If vitamin D levels are within the normal range, the evidence regarding the benefits of additional supplementation is inconclusive.”
Vitamin D is “more of a hormone than a vitamin,” which is “crucial for the functioning of organs, including the heart,” one doctor said. (iStock)
Fox News Senior Medical Analyst Dr. Marc Siegel commented in a separate interview with Fox News Digital that this study highlights what is already known about vitamin D and heart health.
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“This is an important study aimed at maintaining normal levels,” he said. “Vitamin D deficiency leads to inflammation and blood clotting. Normal vitamin D values have been shown to decrease coronary heart disease, heart failure, and stroke.”
Siegel added that vitamin D is “more of a hormone than a vitamin,” which is “crucial for the functioning of organs, including the heart.”
