Low vitamin D levels linked to disease in two big studies: New research suggests that people with low vitamin D levels are more likely to die from cancer and heart disease, although researchers are unsure whether “low levels are a cause of disease or simply an indicator of behaviors that contribute to poor health.” Vitamin D can be produced by the body through exposure to sunlight or can be obtained from certain foods including fish, eggs, fortified dairy and mushrooms and kale. Smoking, obesity and inflammation can all lower blood levels of vitamin D. The new research, which included data from over a million people, found that “adults with lower levels of the vitamin in their systems had a 35% increased risk of death from heart disease, 14% greater likelihood of death from cancer, and a greater mortality risk overall.” However, researchers cautioned that there is still not enough evidence to recommend that everyone take a vitamin D supplement, and they encouraged people to get what they need from food and sunlight.