FOR ADULTS WITH PRE-DIABETES, vitamin D appears to drop the chances of developing diabetes. That is the conclusion of researchers performing a meta-analysis of three clinical trials. Today we look at whether vitamin D and diabetes risk.
Diabetes is a long-lasting health condition that affects how the body converts food into energy. Your break down most of your food into sugar (glucose). The glucose is released into the bloodstream.
With rises in blood sugar levels, the pancreas receives a signal to release insulin. Insulin is a key to let blood sugar into your body’s cells to serve as an energy source.
With diabetes, the body doesn’t make enough insulin (or cannot use it as well as it should). As a result, too much blood sugar lingers in the bloodstream. With time, this state of affairs can cause health problems, including heart disease, kidney disease, and vision loss.
Unfortunately, we do not have a cure for diabetes. Lifestyle maneuvers (including having a healthy diet, losing weight, and being physically active) can help many. For those on medicines, it is important to take them as prescribed and to be diligent about keeping your healthcare provider appointments.
Diabetes by the numbers
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offers these observations:
- Over 37 million US adults have diabetes, and one in five is unaware of the condition.
- Diabetes is the number seven cause of death.
- Diabetes is the leading reason for kidney failure, adult blindness, and lower-limb amputations.
- Over the last 20 years, the number of adults with diabetes has more than doubled.
Pre-diabetes
In the USA, 96 million adults — more than one in three — have pre-diabetes. More than 80 percent do not know they have it. With pre-diabetes, blood sugar levels are higher than normal (but not high enough for a type 2 diabetes diagnosis).
Pre-diabetes raises your risk for type 2 diabetes, stroke, and heart disease. Fortunately, lifestyle changes can often reverse pre-diabetes. The American Diabetes Association has some wonderful suggestions:
American Diabetes Association | Research, Education, Advocacy
Leading the fight against the deadly consequences of diabetes for those affected by it through research funding…diabetes.org
Vitamin D and diabetes risk
Researchers recently published the results of their analysis of three randomized clinical trials online. The experiments tested placebos against three oral forms of vitamin D, including the following:
- Cholecalciferol 20,000 IU (500 mcg) weekly
- Cholecalciferol 4,000 IU (100 mcg) daily
- Eldecalcitol 0.75 mcg daily
Let’s get right to the results:
All three vitamin D supplementation approaches reduced the diabetes risk by a relative 15 percent in those with prediabetes. The three-year absolute risk reduction was 3.3 percent.
The authors acknowledge that the absolute risk reduction of about three percent is small compared with intensive lifestyle interventions (58 percent risk drop) and the prescription drug metformin (31 percent), as demonstrated in a separate study.
Even with this small risk reduction, of the more than 374 million adults worldwide with diabetes, approximately 10 million individuals worldwide might delay the development of diabetes.
However, “extrapolating to the more than 374 million adults worldwide who have pre-diabetes suggests that inexpensive vitamin D supplementation could delay the development of diabetes in more than 10 million people,” they said.
The study revealed no difference in chances of adverse events (such as kidney stones or death) comparing vitamin D versus placebo.
They found no difference in the rate ratios for adverse events (kidney stones, 1.17, 95% confidence interval, 0.69–1.99; hypercalcemia, 2.34; 95% CI, 0.83–6.66]; hypercalciuria, 1.65; 95% CI, 0.83–3.28]; death, 0.85; 95% CI, 0.31–2.36]) when study participants got vitamin D instead of placebo.
Vitamin D levels and diabetes risk
What is the optimal blood level of vitamin D? In their article, the scientists suggest that the amount needed to lower diabetes risk may be higher than the 2011 Institute of Medicine (IOM) committee recommendation:
“The blood 25-hydroxy vitamin D level needed to reduce diabetes risk optimally may be near and possibly above the range of 125–150 nmol/L (50–60 ng/mL) that the 2011 IOM Committee provided as the range corresponding to the tolerable upper intake level (UL) of 4,000 IU/d for vitamin D.”
Vitamin D safety
But is that level safe? An accompanying editorial urges caution, given the important distinctions between vitamin supplements versus therapy. The potential harms of high-dose vitamin D remain unclear.
A systematic review reminds us that high doses of vitamin D come with potential toxicity. While one year of follow-up in randomized clinical trials did not show a higher risk for toxicity (including kidney stones), there was a trend to too much calcium in the blood (hypercalcemia) or urine (hypercalciuria).
Finally, the meta-analysis participants were at high risk for type 2 diabetes; the results may not apply to the healthy population. Very-high-dose vitamin D treatment might prevent type 2 diabetes for some but may also cause harm.
I am comfortable taking vitamin D3 1,000 to 2,000 IU, especially because I live in sun-challenged Seattle, work indoors, am older, and have darker skin.
Study authors’ financial ties
This article has a nice summary of the researcher’s financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry.
The information I provided in this blog is for educational purposes only and does not substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult a medical professional or healthcare provider if you seek medical advice, diagnoses, or treatment. I am not liable for risks or issues associated with using or acting upon the information in this blog.
Thank you for reading “This Vitamin Reduces Diabetes Risk.” Oh, one more thing:
