Photograph: Adam Gault/Getty Images/Science Photo Library RF LAHORE: Maintaining sufficient levels of Vitamin D may help prevent rheumatoid arthritis, a new study suggests. The study examined the ability of immune cells in blood from inflamed joints in people with rheumatoid arthritis to respond to Vitamin D. Published in the Journal of Autoimmunity, the study found that the tissue which was not yet diseases responded effectively to Vitamin D, indicating the possibility of the sunshine vitamin’s role in preventing the onset of rheumatoid arthritis However, the vitamin proved much less effective after the disorder was established which suggests that much higher doses may be required with other anti-inflammatories such as steroids. The study is part of a research project which first began in 2011 and is predicated on previous work showing people with rheumatoid arthritis have vitamin D deficiency and that the vitamin has anti-inflammatory properties.