Can vitamin D level influence the academic performance of medical students?

Abstract

Vitamin D deficiency is common in many Western countries and also in Saudi Arabia. The cognitive effect of Vitamin D has been a subject of debate over the years. Studies in elderly people who had low levels of Vitamin D showed a cognitive decline over 6 years. Even though there is awareness about Vitamin D deficiency among medical students, only few of them are serious about taking care of it. Medical students are known to have excessive stress, which can affect their cognitive function. Researchers have reported that Vitamin D administration has improved cognitive function in the elderly. Sixty articles were collected from PubMed, Google Scholar, Directory of Open Access, and Research Gate relating to Vitamin D, of which 30 relevant articles were chosen to study the possible role of Vitamin D in neuroprotection and cognitive function.

Keywords

• academic performance
• cognitive function
• vitamin d deficiency