The Role of Vitamin D in Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease: An Updated Review of the Literature
Disease Markers, Volume 2015 (2015), Article ID 580474, 15 pages, http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2015/580474, Oct 2015
Dimitrios Papandreou and Zujaja-Tul-Noor Hamid
Department of Natural Sciences and Public Health, Zayed University, Abu Dhabi, UAE
The dietary reference values for Vitamin D were set primarily considering its role in bone health, but with the discovery of Vitamin D receptors throughout body tissues, new links with other health conditions are now studied, such as for diabetes and cardiovascular diseases (CVD). This paper shall analyze and examine all new research studies carried out, especially in 2013–2015 regarding diabetes mellitus (DM) and cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Vast research has been carried out to establish strong relationship between Vitamin D serum levels, supplementation, diabetes, and CVD. However, the results from researches identified in this paper are disputable.
Benefits of Vitamin D adequate levels were recognized from gestational period until later in disease development such as diabetes and/or CVD, but since not all studies are in agreement further investigation is suggested. Researches conducting large randomized controlled trials, exploring range of supplement doses, with variable baseline serum Vitamin D levels, and inclusion of array of associated parameters, are still required to conduct large-scale analysis and draw conclusion as a risk factor. Until then it is possible to conclude that maintenance of serum Vitamin D levels holds advantageous aspects in diabetic and cardiovascular conditions, and people should strive to attain them.
Diabetes Table 1
Cardiovascular Table 2
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- Cardiovascular category listing has
410 items along with related searches 410 items In Cardiovascular category - Overview Cardiovascular and vitamin D
- Hypertension and vitamin D
- Overview Metabolic Syndrome and vitamin D
- Overview Stroke and vitamin D
- Heart Attack 647 items as of May 2018
- Arrhythmia OR “atrial fibrillation” 497 items as of May 2018
- (Arrhythmia OR “atrial fibrillation”) AND Magnesium 345 items as of May 2018
- "C-Reactive Protein" 1530 items as of June 2019
- TRIGLYCERIDES 863 items as of May 2018
- "Peripheral Artery Disease" 170 items as of July 2019
- "Sudden Cardiac Arrest" 98 items as of May 2018
- Search VitaminDWiki for CHF or "HEART FAILURE" 1220 items as of Aug 2017
- Search VitaminDWiki for Atherosclerosis 1510 items as of July 2019
- Cholesterol is needed to produce both Vitamin D and Cortisol
- Overview Cholesterol and vitamin D
- Statins and vitamin D statins often reduce levels of vitamin D
Overview Diabetes and vitamin D contains the following summary- Diabetes is 5X more frequent far from the equator
- Children getting 2,000 IU of vitamin D are 8X less likely to get Type 1 diabetes
- Obese people get less sun / Vitamin D - and also vitamin D gets lost in fat
- Sedentary people get less sun / Vitamin D
- Worldwide Diabetes increase has been concurrent with vitamin D decrease and air conditioning
- Elderly get 4X less vitamin D from the same amount of sun
Elderly also spend less time outdoors and have more clothes on - All items in category Diabetes and Vitamin D
426 items: both Type 1 and Type 2 Vitamin D appears to both prevent and treat diabetes
- Appears that >2,000 IU will Prevent
- Appears that >4,000 IU will Treat , but not cure
- Appears that Calcium and Magnesium are needed for both Prevention and Treatment
which are just some of the vitamin D cofactors
Pages listed in BOTH the categories Diabetes and Intervention- Diabetics and prediabetics helped by 5,000 IU of Vitamin D for 6 months– RCT July 2019
- Depression reduced in Diabetics with 3 months of 4,000 IU of vitamin D – RCT July 2019
- Type 2 Diabetes inflammation reduced by 50,000 IU of Vitamin D bi-weekly and resistance training – RCT – June 2019
- Vitamin D fails to prevent Type 2 Diabetes (unaware of 8 proven ways) June 2019
- Prediabetes both prevented and treated by monthly Vitamin D, etc.
- Peripheral diabetic neuropathy helped by weekly 50,000 IU vitamin D – Jan 2019
- Diabetic nephropathy (Kidney) treated by 50,000 IU of vitamin D weekly – RCT Jan 2019
- Vitamin D treatment of diabetes (50,000 IU every 2 weeks) augmented by probiotic – RCT June 2018
- Waist size reduced 3 cm by Vitamin D in those with Metabolic Syndrome – Jan 2017
- HbA1c levels (Diabetes) reduced by monthly 50,000 IU of vitamin D – Dec 2017
- Gestational diabetes 30 percent less likely if consumed more than 400 IU of vitamin D daily – Oct 2017
- Vitamin D injection is far better than oral for diabetics (poor gut) – RCT March 2017
- Gestational diabetes treated by Vitamin D plus Omega-3 – RCT Feb 2017
- Diabetes treated if given enough vitamin D (example: 50,000 IU weekly) – review of RCT - Jan 2017
- Gestational Diabetes reduce 3 times by 5,000 IU of Vitamin D – RCT Jan 2016
- Gestational Diabetes treated with 50,000 IU every two weeks – RCT Sept 2016
- Diabetic neuropathy reduced by injection of 600,000 IU of vitamin D – Feb 2016
- Diabetes treated by vitamin D when levels exceeded 61 ng – Sept 2015
- Prediabetes reduced by monthly 60,000 IU of vitamin D – RCT May 2015
- Diabetes decreased in aged mice supplemented with vitamin D – April 2015
- Pain of Diabetic Neuropathy reduced with weekly 50,000 IU vitamin D– CT Feb 2015
- Gestational diabetes – Vitamin D and Calcium provided huge benefits – RCT March 2015
- T1 diabetes in children helped with two doses of 150,000 IU of vitamin D and Calcium – March 2015
- Diabetic hypertension reduced with Vitamin D and Calcium – RCT March 2015
- Gestational diabetes reduced by just two 50,000 IU doses of vitamin D – RCT Nov 2014
- Type 1 diabetes helped with 50,000 IU of vitamin D every two weeks – Nov 2014
- Recent Diabetics treated by supplementation which achieved 60 ng of vitamin D – RCT Sept 2014
- Diabetic inflammation reduced by Calcium and 50,000 IU of vitamin D in 8 weeks – RCT 2014
- Gestational Diabetes reduced with 50,000 IU of vitamin D every 3 weeks and daily Calcium – RCT June 2014
- Gestational Diabetes reduced 40 percent by 5,000 IU of vitamin D – RCT April 2014
- Blood pressure in diabetics reduced by 12 weekly doses of 50,000 IU vitamin D – RCT Jan 2014
- Diabetes (Type II) reduced by single injection of 300,000 IU of vitamin D3 – RCT March 2014
- Prediabetics 60 percent less likely to become diabetic if given some vitamin D – Jan 2014
- Diabetes prevention RCT kicked off: adding 4,000 IU vitamin D - Oct 2013
- 50,000 IU Vitamin D weekly Improves Mood, Lowers Blood Pressure in Type 2 Diabetics – Oct 2013
- Insulin resistance during pregnancy improved with 50,000 IU of vitamin D every 2 weeks – RCT April 2013
- Insulin improvement in obese teens with 4000 IU of vitamin D – RCT Feb 2013
- Insulin resistance helped with 50000 IU of vitamin D weekly – Feb 2013
- Insulin sensitivity in obese adolescents greatly improved with 4000 IU of vitamin D - RCT April 2013
- Prediabetics not helped by 50,000 IU of vitamin D weekly and Calcium– Jan 2013
- 140,000 IU vitamin D monthly reduced probability of diabetes – Nov 2011
- 300,000 IU loading dose of vitamin D3 stopped gestational diabetes in RCT – Oct 2011
- Overview Diabetes and vitamin D
- 4000 IU RCT reduces type 2 diabetes HOMA by 24% and CRP by 64% April 2010
Pages listed in BOTH the categories Diabetes and Meta-analysis
- Low Magnesium associated with diabetes, etc. – meta-analysis 2016
- Vitamin D reduced only the systolic blood pressure in T2DM – Meta-analysis April 2019
- Vitamin D helps Diabetic Nephropathy kidneys – meta-analysis April 2019
- Vitamin D treats Gestational Diabetes, decreases hospitalization and newborn complications – meta-analysis March 2019
- Diabetic Foot Ulcer 3.2 X more likely if low vitamin D – meta-analysis March 2019
- Prediabetes treated by Vitamin D (34 ng, 3500 IU per day) – meta-analysis May 2018
- Diabetics helped by vitamin D in 5 ways – meta-analysis June 2018
- Diabetes treated and prevented by more than 2,000 IU of vitamin D (need more and gut-friendly) - meta-analyses 2018
- Gestational Diabetes 39 percent more likely if insufficient Vitamin D – Meta-analysis March 2018
- Diabetic inflammation reduced by Vitamin D – meta-analysis Feb 2018
- Type 1 Diabetes (T1DM) 1.6 X more likely if low vitamin D – meta-analysis Jan 2018
- Hyperglycemia associated with low vitamin D – type II diabetics and healthy people – meta-analysis Jan 2018
- Diabetes helped by daily 4,000 IU of Vitamin D – meta-analysis Sept 2017
- Diabetic nephropathy (Kidney problem) 1.8 X more likely if poor Vitamin D Receptor – meta-analysis July 2017
- Diabetic Retinopathy twice as likely if a T2 Diabetic has low level of vitamin D – meta-analysis March 2017
- Diabetic Retinopathy 2 X more likely if poor Vitamin D Receptor – meta-analysis Nov 2016
- Magnesium is associated with prevention and treatment of Diabetes – Meta-analysis Aug 2016
- Diabetic Retinopathy 27 percent more likely if low vitamin D – meta-analysis May 2016
- Gestational Diabetes Mellitus 1.5X more likely if low vitamin D – meta-analysis Oct 2015
- Diabetes not prevented by Vitamin D (when you ignore how much vitamin D was taken) – Sept 2015
- Diabetics are 2.7 X more likely to get peripheral neuropathy if low vitamin D – meta-analysis Dec 2014
- Diabetes not prevented or treated if give only modest amount of vitamin D or for short period of time – meta-analysis July 2014
- Type 2 diabetes 1.5X more likely if low vs high vitamin D – meta-analysis Feb 2013
- 4 percent less type 2 diabetes for every 4 ng more vitamin D – meta-analysis May 2013
- Vitamin D receptor gene associated with 50 percent more type 2 Diabetes – meta-analyses 2013, 2016
- Metabolic Syndrome in children is associated with low vitamin D – review Jan 2013
- Gestational diabetes 60 percent more likely below 20 ng of vitamin D – meta-analysis Feb 2012
- Diabetes down 13 percent if more than 500 IU of vitamin D – meta-analysis July 2011
Pages listed in BOTH the categories Cardiovascular and Meta-analysis
- Vitamin D supplementation reduces many Cardiovascular Disease markers– meta-analysis July 2018
- Low-dose vitamin D does not help cardiovascular (many were 100-1,000 IU) – meta-analysis June 2019
- Heart Failure and Vitamin D meta-analyses - 2016, 2019
- Vitamin K (across all dose sizes and types) decrease Vascular Stiffness – meta-analysis - Dec 2018
- Small or infrequent doses of vitamin D do not reduce heart failure much – meta-analysis Jan 2018
- Peripheral arterial disease risk is 1.5X higher if low vitamin D – meta-analysis March 2018
- Omega-3 reduced time in hospital and atrial fibrillation after cardiac surgery – meta-analysis May 2016
- Cardiovascular deaths 12 percent less likely if have 10 ng more vitamin D – meta-analysis March 2017
- Health problems prevented by eating nuts (perhaps due to Magnesium and or Omega-3) – meta-analysis Dec 2016
- Atrial Fibrillation 1.3 times more likely if low vitamin D – meta-analysis Sept 2016
- Coronary Artery Disease without diabetes 5 times more likely if VDR gene problems – meta-analysis May 2016
- Chronic Heart Failure not treated by Vitamin D, if dose size is ignored – meta-analysis Oct 2015
- Atrial fibrillation sometimes treated by Omega-3 – meta-analysis Sept 2015
- Peripheral Arterial Disease patients have low vitamin D levels – meta-analysis Oct 2015
- C-reactive protein (heart disease marker) reduced by vitamin D – meta-analysis 2014, 2019
- Cardiovascular disease associated with postmenopausal non-human primates – meta-analysis Jan 2015
- Adding Calcium does NOT cause cardiovascular problems (reverses their meta-analysis) – Dec 2014
- Statin pain associated with 10 ng less vitamin D – meta-analysis Oct 2014
- Risk of Cardiac failure reduced 20 percent by even a small amount of vitamin D – meta-analysis July 2014
- Magnesium prevents cardiovascular events – Meta-analysis March 2013
- Cardiovascular disease 50 % more likely if low vitamin D - meta-analysis Nov 2012
- Omega-3 does not help heart patients – meta-analysis Sept 2012
- Half as many heart deaths for those with high levels of vitamin D – meta-analysis Sept 2012
- Shift workers 23 percent more likely to have cardiovascular events – meta-analysis July 2012
- Low density lipoprotein cholesterol is predictable from vitamin D levels – meta-analysis March 2012
- 800 IU Vitamin D does not help heart – meta-analysis Aug 2011
- Calcium without vitamin D increased heart risk by 30 percent - Jan 2011
- Meta-analysis unsure if vitamin D can prevent cardiovascular disease – Sept 2010
Pages listed in BOTH the categories Intervention and Cardiovascular
- 50,000 IU of vitamin D weekly following cardiac failure helps – RCT 2014
- 50,000 IU of Vitamin D for 9 weeks was enough to restore blood levels (but not long enough to statistically improve CVD) – Aug 2018
- Cardiovascular risk markers not helped by 20,000 IU of vitamin D weekly – RCT May 2018
- Heart attack ICU costs cut in half by Vitamin D – Oct 2018
- Hypertension not controlled by 26 ng of Vitamin D (50,000 IU bi-weekly A-A) – RCT Nov 2017
- Heart Failure not helped by Vitamin D (several strange things about the trial) – RCT May 2017
- Chronic Heart Failure improved with 4,000 IU daily for a year – RCT April 2016
- Cardiovascular death reduction in dark skin migrants by just 1,000 IU of vitamin D – May 2015
- Heart failure markers reduced by 400 IU of vitamin D and Calcium (surprise) – RCT Jan 2015
- Angina dramatically reduced by injections of vitamin D twice a month (300,000 IU) – Jan 2015
- Salmon intervention (vitamin D and Omega-3) improved heart rate variability and reduced anxiety – Nov 2014
- 1700 IU vitamin D for a year provided no cardiovascular benefit (no surprise) – RCT Oct 2014
- Seniors with Heart Failure helped by daily 4,000 IU of vitamin D (increase 16 ng) – RCT Aug 2014
- Hearts responded to stress better after 5,000 IU of vitamin D for a month - March 2014
- More blood was pumped by those getting 800,000 IU of vitamin D after heart failure – RCT Oct 2013
- Chronic Heart Failure helped with 2,000 IU of vitamin D (PRA reduced) – RCT June 2013
- 4000 IU vitamin D daily for just 5 days reduced inflammation after heart attack – RCT Jan 2013
- Congestive heart failure in infants virtually cured by 1000 IU of vitamin D – RCT Feb 2012
- Chance of death after heart failure reduced by 1000 IU of vitamin D – Feb 2012
Pages listed in BOTH the categories Diabetes and Cardiovascular
- Peripheral Arterial Disease 3.7 X more likely in diabetics with low vitamin D – June 2019
- Cardiometaboic problems decreased with increased Vitamin D, unless low Magnesium – Aug 2017
- Cardiometabolic risk reduced by Omega-3 - dissertation Sept 2017
- Psoriasis is associated with kidney disease, heart problems, diabetes, etc – Nov 2015
- Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes helped by Vitamin D – most 2013-15 studies agree
- More vitamin D makes for better health – dissertation based on Rotterdam studies – Oct 2015
- The health benefits of vitamin K – Oct 2015
- ALL of the top 10 health problems of women are associated with low vitamin D
- Hypothesis: Diabetes association with CVD is via Vitamin D – Sept 2012
- Vitamin D significantly lowers macrophage adhesion to prevent arterial clots (in diabetics)– Nov 2012
- Vitamin D protects against many types of health problems – review May 2013
- Hypothesis: Decreasing Magnesium and increasing CaMg ratio are increasing health problems – 2012 - 2013
- Timeline of Heart Disease, Diabetes, fats, lard, HFCS, and vitamin D – Aug 2012
- Vitamin D level higher than 30 ng reduces diabetic blood clotting – Nov 2012
- Off topic: CVD: the primary cause of death in senior women, is increasing – Nov 2012
- Low vitamin D associated with obesity-related diseases for ethnic minorities – Sept 2011
- Vitamin D deficiency might cause diabetes and cardiovascular diseases – Jan 2012
- Vitamin D relationship with HDL and LDL is uncertain – Oct 2011
- Studies linked low vitamin D and dark skin to Obesity, Diabetes, and heart – June 2011
- Not yet certain that vitamin D reduces cardiovascular and diabetes in blacks – Mar 2011
- Overview Metabolic Syndrome and vitamin D
- Vitamin D deficiency associated with many diseases – Greece April 2010
- The impact of vitamin D deficiency on diabetes and cardiovascular risk -April 2010
- Table of outcomes for seniors vs vitamin D level
- Vitamin D decreases incidence of disease
Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes helped by Vitamin D – most 2013-15 studies agree
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