Another study out of Israel has confirmed what similar studies have shown that people with low levels of vitamin D are at increased risk from COVID-19.

Researchers from Israel’s Leumit Health Services and Azriel Faculty of Medicine compared 782 Covid patients in Israel with 7,807 patients who tested negative for the virus.

The Jerusalem Post reports:

“The main finding of our study was the significant association of low plasma vitamin D level with the likelihood of COVID-19 infection among patients who were tested for COVID-19, even after adjustment for age, gender, socio-economic status and chronic, mental and physical disorders,” said Dr. Eugene Merzon, Head of the Department of Managed Care and a leading researcher of the LHS group.

“Our finding is in agreement with the results of previous studies in the field. Reduced risk of acute respiratory tract infection following vitamin D supplementation has been reported,” said Dr. Ilan Green, Head of the LHS Research Institute.

READ: Israeli Study Finds Low Vitamin D Level Linked to Increased COVID-19 Risk

Vitamin D is often called the sunshine vitamin because sunshine converts cholesterol into vitamin D. During the winter months, decreased sun results in lower levels of the vitamin D serum that in turn makes us more vulnerable to colds.

Other studies have suggested that this also explains why the elderly living in nursing homes are particularly vulnerable to the Coronavirus because they rarely go outside, even during the summer, and as a result have extremely low levels of the vitamin D serum. READ: People with low levels of Vitamin D may be more likely to catch coronavirus and die from COVID-19 infection, study suggests