Fertility improved with vitamin D supplement, unsure if low D causes low fertility – Jan 2018

Does Vitamin D Deficiency Have a Role in the Reduced Fertility?

Revista Portuguesa de Endocrinologia, Diabetes e Metabolismo, Vol 13 No 1 (2018): Jan - June
Ana Margarida Monteiro, Endocrinology department, Hospital de Braga
Ana Filipa Brás, Reproductive Medicine Unit, Centro Hospitalar do Alto Ave, Guimarães, Portugal
Sofia Dantas, Endocrinology department, Hospital de Braga, Braga, Portugal

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Vitamin D is an emerging factor influencing fertility. The basis of this relationship lays on the presence of both vitamin D receptor and 1α-hydroxylase enzyme in reproductive organs. The widespread of vitamin D deficiency across all age groups and the published studies about the negative impact on overall health led to several investigations to assess the effect of vitamin D levels in human reproduction. Vitamin D status correlates to metabolic and hormonal dysfunctions in women with polycystic ovary syndrome and vitamin D deficiency is a negative predictor of ovulatory response in those women. Also, a positive correlation between vitamin D levels and anti-Müllerian hormone have been documented. Evidence suggests a link between lower vitamin D status, and endometriosis and vitamin supplementation has been associated with amelioration of dysmenorrhea. Studies in men revealed a positive correlation between circulating vitamin D levels and semen quality parameters. Vitamin D supplementation is being considered to improve semen quality in at least some of the idiopathic cases of male infertility. The relationship between vitamin D levels and assisted reproductive techniques outcomes have also been investigated, although the results are controversial. This paper intends to review the latest knowledge concerning the role of vitamin D in human reproduction.