Effects of vitamin d3 deficiency on performance in football players

Abstract

Introduction: Football is a sport where speed and kicking performance are of utmost importance for most of the actions during the sport. Such intense actions require vitamin D at optimal levels. There is a global prevalence of vitamin D deficiency even in countries with ample sunlight, India being an example.70%–100% of the general population in India is considered to have low vitamin D levels. Very few studies have aimed at finding out the vitamin D status in sportsmen while maximum studies have addressed the community in general. Objective: The study aims at finding out the prevalence of vitamin D3 deficiency along with the effects of its deficiency on the kicking performance in football players. Methods: This experimental study was carried out on 150 elite level football players from local clubs and academies across Mumbai city. All the subjects went through a screening blood test to determine vitamin D3 levels. Performance parameters were analyzed by assessing side kick distance, instep kick distance and kick velocity both at the beginning and end of 4 weeks sup-plementation. Results: Paired T-test was used to analyze the data which showed statically significant improvement in sidekick distance, instep kick distance and kick velocity post 4 weeks of vitamin D3 supplementation. About 87% players recorded vitamin D3 levels < 30 ng/ml (nanograms/milliliter) and 99% players recorded vitamin D3 < 40 ng/ml (nanograms/milliliter). Conclusion: We concluded that the vitamin D3 level in professional football players in Mumbai city is far below optimal. Sup-plementation may improve their performance and speed in terms of kick distance and kick velocity.