Current vitamin D recommendations not high enough; Male life expectancy falls to 73; Lung cancer survival rates rise - Morning Medical Update

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Current vitamin D recommendations not high enough

Current dosing recommendations for vitamin D are not high enough, two studies show. The current recommendation is 600 to 800 International Units (IU), but researchers found that some patients need as many as 10,000 IU. Vitamin D treatment is currently being studied for preventing heart attacks and strokes. “If researchers are going to further look at Vitamin D dosing as a possible way to improve heart health, patients need to be given the right doses to reach those ideal levels," Heidi May, PhD, lead author and epidemiologist at Intermountain Health said in an interview.

Male life expectancy falls to 73

Men’s life expectancy in the United States is now 73 years while women’s is 79 years. This is the largest the gap has been since 1996. “The opioid epidemic, mental health, and chronic metabolic disease are certainly front and center in the data that we see here,” Brandon Yan, the lead author of the study said in a statement. Men and women in countries such as Japan, the U.K. and Italy all enjoy life expectancies of 80 years or more.

Lung cancer survival rates rise

Survival rates for lung cancer are on the rise, specifically in marginalized communities, a new survey from the American Lung Association shows. Among people of color, rates increased by 17% in just two years. Other groups have seen rates increase by 22% in five years. “Being able to see significant progress over a couple of years has been very exciting and definitely a cause for optimism,"Zach Jump, director of epidemiology and statistics for the American Lung Association said in a statement.