SATURDAY, June 19 (HealthDay News) -- A pair of new studies has uncovered evidence that low levels of vitamin D could lead to poor blood sugar control among diabetics and increase the risk of developing metabolic syndrome among seniors.
Both findings are slated to be presented Saturday at the Endocrine Society's annual meeting in San Diego.
In one study, researchers at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore reviewed the medical charts of 124 type 2 diabetes patients who sought specialty care at an endocrine outpatient facility between 2003 and 2008.
More than 90 percent of the patients, who ranged in age from 36 to 89, had either vitamin D deficiency or insufficiency, the authors found, despite the fact that they all had had routine primary care visits before their specialty visit.
Just about 6 percent of the patients were taking a vitamin D supplement at the time of their visit, the research team noted, and those who had lower vitamin D levels were also more likely to have higher average blood sugar levels.
"This finding supports an active role of vitamin D in the development of type 2 diabetes," study co-author Dr. Esther Krug, an assistant professor of medicine, said in a news release from the Endocrine Society.
"Since primary care providers diagnose and treat most patients with type 2 diabetes, screening and vitamin D supplementation as part of routine primary care may improve health outcomes of this highly prevalent condition," Krug added.
A second study involving nearly 1,300 white Dutch men and women over the age of 65 found almost half were vitamin D-deficient, while 37 percent had metabolic syndrome.
Metabolic syndrome is a grouping of health risk factors, including high blood pressure, abdominal obesity, abnormal cholesterol levels and high blood sugar.
"Because the metabolic syndrome increases the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease, an adequate vitamin D level in the body might be important in the prevention of these diseases," study co-author Dr. Marelise Eekhoff, of VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam, said in the same news release.
Regardless of gender, those with insufficient amounts of vitamin D in their blood were more likely to have the syndrome than those with sufficient amounts of vitamin D, Eekhoff and her colleagues found.
"It is important," added Eekhoff, "to investigate the exact role of vitamin D in diabetes to find new and maybe easy ways to prevent it and cardiovascular disease."
SOURCE: Endocrine Society, June 19, 2010, news release
This interests me. When I was tested by my new doc in January she found that I was severely depleted in Vitamin D. I am now taking supplements, but it will take several years for my body to regain my equilibrium.
Thanks for the post. I had heard that a lot of people are deffient in Vit D and have wondered about all the sun screen we use these days, but didn't know about how Vit D relates to BS and metabolic disorder. Guess we were meant to spend a lot of time outdoors. My dh is outside every sunny day until his accident and even now I try to get him outside to sit for a while. Of course we avoid when the sun is the hottest. I'm the one who is more likely to be deficient, but these days I am sure getting outside more often so perhaps it will help that too.
Thanks for the post. I had heard that a lot of people are deffient in Vit D and have wondered about all the sun screen we use these days, but didn't know about how Vit D relates to BS and metabolic disorder. Guess we were meant to spend a lot of time outdoors. My dh is outside every sunny day until his accident and even now I try to get him outside to sit for a while. Of course we avoid when the sun is the hottest. I'm the one who is more likely to be deficient, but these days I am sure getting outside more often so perhaps it will help that too.
Hi Mary,
My Endocrinologist found out that I was low on D & gave me a high-dose prescription for a couple of weeks. Now I take a supplement everyday & it appears to be OK.
This is a realatively new diagnosis, but i'm seeing more and more people in the hospital prescribed vitamin D, in often very large doses. I guess we were supposed to get out in the sun, huh?
This is a realatively new diagnosis, but i'm seeing more and more people in the hospital prescribed vitamin D, in often very large doses. I guess we were supposed to get out in the sun, huh?
Hi Freda,
Here's a weird one - Dermatologist tells me that my melanoma is caused by too much sun. However, my lumphoma (mine affects my skin) is caused by not enough sun.
Hmmmmmm. Vitamin D deficiency also plays a role in developing MS...apparently it is more prevalent in people (primarily women) of northern European descent, and the farther from the equator you live, the more likely you are to develop it. It certainly does seem that the sun is far more important to humanity than it's perhaps given credit for in these modern times of artifical light and air conditioning, eh?
New here but wanted to add that my doctor has always had me taking calcium supplements with D -- in addition to other things, D increases the rate our bodies absorb calcium and helps prevent osteo.
In peertrainer (a weightloss help program not really a diet program), one of the doctors they interviewed said he thought that knowing your Vit D level is more important even than knowing your cholesterol numbers. I thought that was interesting esp since my doctor has never mentioned it. I do take Vit D both in a multi-vit/mineral supplement and in my calcium supplement.
If you do a search online about Vitamin D3 ( the one that the studies are talking about) you will find some pretty amazing stuff.
One being that all our organs need it to operate properly. That is why there is a connection to MS.
Other studies have shown that some women with polycystic ovary syndrome had sub-optimal levels of vitamin D.(2,3) Low vitamin D has been clearly linked to insulin resistance and obesity.
In other words, the heavier you are and the more insulin resistant you are, the more likely it is that your vitamin D is too low.
I read about vitamin D3 on another forum a few weeks ago and I am now taking 5,000 IU a day. The RDA is 400 IU. Way too low if you are deficient.
What an interesting article.. thanks..when i was in the hosp for 5 months and went thru rehab i was given lg does of vitamin d dailey and dr perscribed that i had to be taken outside every day for 1/2 hr..it helped me heal.its amazing what we have learned about how our bodies work..rosey
I am now taking vitamin d, and regularly taking a multi vitamin, calcium and fish oil. Wasn't before. I started to vitamin d because I had read it can lead to sleep problems, then I read your post, so.. Thanks for the info, so many little things can contribute to well being, I am making more of an effort to take care of myself in a kind way.
Interesting subject. Thanks very much for posting the article and the thread. Maryea, I do think sunscreen stops something that we need. I stopped using sunscreen a few years ago after having used it for decades. Also stopped wearing sunglasses. My skin has a few more wrinkles and my face isn't as pale as I like, but I feel much better. My eyes have adjusted some to sunshine. I have very, very pale eyes and wore sunglasses for decades, too. It took the skin on my face a good couple of years to adjust, but I no longer get the strange blotches I used to when I occasionally didn't wear sunscreen or enough.
I exercise outside at sunrise and stay out of the afternoon sun unless I really need to take care of something.
I too have always taken D with my calcium as well as what is in my MultiVitamin. I was surprised when my doctor told me that I was deficient and when I told him how much I was taking, he said it wasn't enough. He said I needed to be taking 2000 instead of the 800 I was taking.
I came home and googled Vitamin D and learned that we should or for my age I should be in the sun 10 - 15 min without sunscreen. If I'm going to be in the sun past 15 min then I should put on sunscreen. I have found this all very interesting as I can remember when we were told to be careful as we could get too much Vitamin D. I remember a lady coming in the beauty shop one day and said she had just come from the doctor and she didn't have enough D. She said they said "Sorry, we told you not to get too much Vitamin D, because now we have learned that we were wrong".
I guess we can be thankful that they are learning so much more these days than they knew years ago.
Vitamin D
