Lack Of Vitamin D Causes Muscle Weakness In Alcoholics

It’s common knowledge that alcoholism is disastrous for your health. One surprising statistic, however, is that 40 to 60 percent of alcoholics suffer from myopathy – a muscular wasting disease brought on by the amount of alcohol that they consume. Now, a review of alcohol-related myopathy and vitamin D deficiency has suggested that a lack of vitamin D in the body could be partly to blame in the regular occurrence of myopathy alongside chronic alcoholism.

Myopathy is a muscular disease that causes the muscle fibres to not function correctly. This leads to muscular weakness and, eventually, muscles wasting away. It can lead to an inability to climb staircases or even difficulties in getting up from a chair.

Having a deficiency in vitamin D is well known as a risk factor in people developing myopathy. It’s also known that drinking heavily and regularly can reduce levels of vitamin D in your body to below a healthy rate.

The authors of the study suggested that the review linked deficiencies in vitamin D, phosphate and magnesium with muscle weakness in alcoholism. And while previous studies had suggested that alcohol-induced muscle weakness were not related to dietary deficiencies, this one specifically looked at how severely low-levels of vitamin D can affect myopathy.

Deficiencies in vitamin D levels in alcoholics can be caused by a large number of things. A poor diet, lack of exposure to the sun and dysfunction of the liver could all be to blame. It is well-known that alcoholism can lead to a loss of appetite or generally eating bad foods, which can stop the body from receiving the vitamins and minerals it needs to stay healthy.

On a positive note, the researchers also confirmed that myopathy that is caused by alcoholism tends to improve after six to nine months of stopping drinking. After this muscle strength often returns to its original level from before the alcoholism.