John white /newsroom/taxonomy/term/13344/all en How vitamin D deficiency can lead to autoimmune diseases /newsroom/channels/news/how-vitamin-d-deficiency-can-lead-autoimmune-diseases-360580 <p>As Canadians brace for “vitamin D winter” – months when the sun’s angle is too low to produce the vitamin in the skin – a ƬƵ University study explains why vitamin D deficiency early in life is associated with a higher risk of autoimmune diseases.</p> <p>During childhood, the thymus helps train immune cells to distinguish between the body’s own tissues and harmful invaders. A vitamin D deficiency at that stage of life causes the thymus to age more quickly, the researchers discovered.</p> Mon, 21 Oct 2024 15:20:40 +0000 keila.depape@mcgill.ca 314722 at /newsroom