Blaney, Greg P, Albert, Paul J, Proal, Amy D · Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences · 2009 · DOI
This study measured two types of vitamin D in the blood of patients with autoimmune and chronic diseases, including ME/CFS. The researchers found that a specific form of vitamin D (1,25-D) at high levels was associated with these conditions, but the commonly-tested form of vitamin D (25-D) was not. This suggests doctors may need to test for the right type of vitamin D to properly assess autoimmune disease.
For ME/CFS patients and researchers, this study challenges the widespread assumption that low vitamin D is causally related to ME/CFS and suggests that abnormal vitamin D metabolism (specifically elevated active vitamin D) may be more relevant. Understanding which vitamin D marker is abnormal could inform future diagnostic and therapeutic approaches targeting immune dysregulation in ME/CFS.
This study does not prove that high 1,25-D causes ME/CFS or that correcting it will treat the disease—it only demonstrates association in a cross-sectional design. It does not establish whether elevated 1,25-D is a primary driver of autoimmune dysfunction or a secondary consequence of disease, nor does it evaluate whether 1,25-D testing would improve patient outcomes. The small sample size and lack of detailed controls limit generalizability.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
The first block is for the primary paper and is the citation you should use in research work. The atlas-snapshot line only applies if you are specifically referring to this atlas’s reading of the paper on the date shown.
Primary citation
Blaney, Greg P, Albert, Paul J, & Proal, Amy D (2009). Vitamin D metabolites as clinical markers in autoimmune and chronic disease.. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-6632.2009.04875.x
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-blaney-2009-vitamin-metabolites,
author = {Blaney, Greg P and Albert, Paul J and Proal, Amy D},
title = {Vitamin D metabolites as clinical markers in autoimmune and chronic disease.},
journal = {Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences},
year = {2009},
doi = {10.1111/j.1749-6632.2009.04875.x},
note = {PubMed: 19758177},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/blaney-2009-vitamin-metabolites},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-29. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/blaney-2009-vitamin-metabolites
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