TOPLINE

Higher levels of vitamin A were significantly associated with better lung function in children and adults with asthma, while both vitamin A and D levels were linked to slower epigenetic aging in adults.

METHODOLOGY

• Researchers used data from two asthma cohorts to examine associations of vitamin A and D levels with lung function in children and adults with asthma, as well as their link to biological age acceleration in adults.
• They included 1115 children (mean age, 9.2 years; 39% girls) from the GACRS and 1041 adults (mean age, 58.8 years; 67% women) from the ODOLLFA study.
• Vitamin A and D levels and lung function parameters including forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV₁), forced vital capacity (FVC), and FEV₁/FVC ratio were assessed using standard procedures or were extracted from clinical lab records where available.
• The researchers also examined how vitamin A and D levels were linked to lung function, epigenetic age acceleration, microRNA (miRNA) expression, and DNA methylation and whether changes in miRNA activity helped explain these associations.

TAKEAWAY

• In children with asthma, higher plasma vitamin A levels were significantly associated with better absolute lung volumes, including higher FEV₁ and FVC (P < .005 for both), but were associated with a lower FEV₁/FVC ratio; however, vitamin D levels were not significantly associated with lung function.
• In adults with asthma, both vitamin A and D plasma levels were significantly associated with higher FEV₁ and FVC (P < .05 for all). Only plasma vitamin A levels were associated with a higher FEV₁/FVC ratio in women.
• Among adults, those with sufficient vitamin D levels (≥ 30 ng/mL) showed lower epigenetic age acceleration than those with insufficient levels (< 30 ng/mL) across six epigenetic clocks, with mean differences ranging from -3.88 to -0.03 years.
• The study identified 229 and 89 miRNAs associated with plasma vitamin A levels in children and adults, respectively, and vitamin D levels were associated with 14 and 8 miRNAs, respectively.

IN PRACTICE

“[The study] results underscore the potential epigenetic mechanisms through which vitamins A and D may exert protective effects against biological ageing, particularly in the context of asthma,” the authors wrote.

SOURCE

The study was led by Rinku Sharma, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, and was published online on June 30, 2026, in Thorax.

LIMITATIONS

Plasma vitamin A levels were measured relatively rather than absolutely, messenger RNA expression data were unavailable, and longitudinal data were lacking. Therefore, the study could not determine how vitamin A and D levels affect lung function over time.

DISCLOSURES

This study received funding from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and partial support from TruDiagnostic. One author disclosed serving as a scientific advisor and receiving funding from TruDiagnostic. Another author disclosed having board membership at Histolix and receiving royalties from UpToDate.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.