The increase in the prevalence of type 2 diabetes is closely linked to the upsurge in obesity. Obesity and associated metabolic syndrome is also linked to impaired glucose tolerance. Epidemiological studies have linked low vitamin D levels to the pathogenesis of diabetes and also supported the favorable effects of adequate vitamin D intake on reducing the risk of T2D.

Dr Hao L et al. and colleagues have recently found in a new study that among postmenopausal women, Vitamin D is beneficial for glucose markers but not obesity.

The findings of the study have been published in the Journal Clinical Therapeutics.
The effect of vitamin D effect on glucose markers and obesity in postmenopausal women remains controversial. There needs to be more data available on the dosage and duration of vitamin D for optimal efficacy in postmenopausal women. This background was researched in the present study using databases without language restrictions. The data was collected from PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science, EMBASE, and Scopus.
A total of Nine eligible articles with 12 comparisons qualified for the final quantitative analysis and the findings could be summarised as follows:
An overall decrease was noted in fasting blood glucose, homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance, insulin and glycosylated haemoglobin with a weighted mean difference of -3.56 mg/dL; -1.168 mm; -2.26 units; and -0.41%, respectively after vitamin D administration in postmenopausal women.
In subgroup analyses, there was a notable decrease in fasting blood glucose when the intervention course was ˃6 months and dosage ≤1000 IU/d with WMD, -3.48 mg/dL.
Vitamin D was not associated with body mass index, weight, or waist circumference.
The researchers have concluded that Vitamin D is beneficial for glucose markers but not obesity in postmenopausal women.
However a personalized dosage plan for vitamin D should be implemented for postmenopausal women based on the target clinical outcomes.
Further reading:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clinthera.2023.07.009