Regular exposure to the sun can help prevent glucose metabolism disorders regardless of how much people weigh, according to a new study by the Endocrine Society.
Obesity is commonly considered as one of the leading causes of diabetes, but the latest research shows people are more likely at risk for Type 2 diabetes, pre-diabetes, and metabolic syndrome than obesity when they have low levels of Vitamin D. The study sheds light on how Vitamin D deficiency contributes to diabetes and obesity. According to the Endocrine Society's Scientific Statement on Non-Skeletal Effects of Vitamin D, people who have low levels of the vitamin are more likely to be prone to glucose metabolism disorders and obesity.
However, in the study involving 118 patients from the Virgen de la Victoria university hospital in Spain and 30 patients from Hospital Universitari Dr. Josep Trueta in Girona, Spain, researchers found out that lack of Vitamin D is more likely to lead to diabetes than obesity. The researchers say Vitamin D deficiency does not cause diabetes but there is a closer link between the two than between Vitamin D deficiency and obesity.
"The major strength of this study is that it compares Vitamin D levels in people at a wide range of weights (from lean to morbidly obese subjects) while taking whether they had diabetes into account," says Mercedes Clemente-Postigo, one of the study's authors, in a statement.
The study grouped the participants according to their body mass index (BMI) and whether they had diabetes and pre-diabetes or not. Next, the researchers took their Vitamin D levels by measuring it in their bloodstream and in the Vitamin D receptor gene. The results show participants with higher concentrations of Vitamin D were far less likely to have diabetes, even if they had higher BMI. Similarly, lean people with lower BMI were more likely to have glucose metabolism disorders when they had low levels of Vitamin D.
"Our findings indicate that Vitamin D is associated more closely with glucose metabolism than obesity," says co-author Manuel Macias-Gonzales. "This study suggests that Vitamin D deficiency and obesity interact synergistically to heighten the risk of diabetes and other metabolic disorders. The average person may be able to reduce their risk by maintaining a healthy diet and getting enough outdoor activity."
Vitamin D is naturally produced by the skin after being exposed to sunlight. One can also get Vitamin D, although in smaller amounts, in food sources such as salmon, tuna, mackerel, beef liver, cheese, and egg yolks. Aside from increasing the body's ability to absorb calcium and aid in maintaining teeth and bone help, Vitamin D also plays a role in strengthening the immune system and improving cell growth. Other studies have also pointed to Vitamin D's ability to lower risk of heart problems, Alzheimer's disease, and colon cancer.
The results of the study are published in the Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
