Vitamin D continues to impress as an important protective nutrient. Previous research linked this amazing nutrient to reduced risk of heart disease, bone fractures, depression, and more. Now, a research team at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine has confirmed the important role vitamin D plays in helping women survive breast cancer. Vitamin D doubles a woman’s chances of surviving breast cancer Led by Professor Cedric F. Garland, the team analyzed five separate studies investigating the presence of the activated form of vitamin D (25-hydroxyvitamin D or 25(OH)D) in the blood. The research included data from 4,443 breast cancer patients who had their blood levels tested upon diagnosis and at periodic intervals over the following nine years. Then researchers compared women with high blood serum levels of 25(OH)D averaging 30 nanograms per milliliter (ng/ml) or more to those with low levels of 17 ng/ml or less, which is the current average for breast cance…