Research

Mixed

Daily supplementation with ordinary doses of vitamin D (ergocalciferol or cholecalciferol) is associated with a statistically significant decrease in all-cause mortality.

Take a daily vitamin D supplement (D2 or D3) in the range of 400-800 IU. This ordinary dose, shown in large studies to be safe, is associated with a modest but significant reduction in the risk of dying from any cause, independent of whether you also take calcium.

GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
The summary relative risk for mortality from any cause was 0.93 (95% confidence interval, 0.87-0.99)... Intake of ordinary doses of vitamin D supplements seems to be associated with decreases in total mortality rates.
Philippe Autier · Archives of Internal Medicine · 2007

Why this rating

Meta-analysis of 18 randomized controlled trials with over 57,000 participants provides high-quality aggregate evidence, though individual trial heterogeneity exists.

Source

Vitamin D Supplementation and Total Mortality<subtitle>A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials</subtitle>

Philippe Autier · Archives of Internal Medicine · 2007

DOI 10.1001/archinte.167.16.1730

Meta-analysis · 18 studiesCited 1,108×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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