Beneficial Effects of Vitamin D on Insulin Sensitivity, Blood Pressure, Abdominal Subcutaneous Fat Thickness, and Weight Loss in Refractory Obesity
Clinical Diabetes 2018 Jul; 36(3): 217-225. https://doi.org/10.2337/cd17-0099
Amr Shaaban Hanafy1 Dr_amr_hanafy at yahoo.com and Hany Ahmed Elkatawy2
All had previously been unsuccessful at losing weight
Initial weight = 98.6 kg (217 lbs)
Initial BMI =37 kg/m2
Patients with less than 30 ng level of vitamin D got 100,000 IU every two weeks
Two groups of about 100 people
12 weeks – concurrent Vitamin D supplementation and diet/exercise
All patients had a diet and walking program adjusted to their bodies
- 500-kcal deficit diet
- walking for 30 minutes 5 days/week with heart rate @ 40–54% of maximum
weight loss kg | weight loss lbs | Vitamin D before | Vitamin D after | |
Vitamin D | 11.7 kg | 26 lbs | 18 ng | 35 ng |
No added vitamin D | 3.1kg | 7 lbs | > 30 ng |
Comment by the founder of VitaminDWiki
- Probably would have had much more weight loss if had repleted Vitamin D BEFORE the diet and exercise portion of the program.
- The Vitamin D would have been virtually useless in the first month or two of this 3-month program
- Repletion can take 8-12 weeks if given bi-weekly (1,200,000 = 12 week X 100,000 IU)
- Repletion <2 weeks if given all within a single week (e.g. 170,000 daily)
See also VitaminDWiki
- This Common Vitamin Doubles Weight Loss– July 2019
- Overweight and obese lost 12 lbs with vitamin D in 6 months– RCT May 2015
- Patients with larger waistlines 'should have vitamin D levels checked' - May 2018
- Obese lost more weight on diet if added 50,000 IU of vitamin D weekly – many RCTs
- Overweight and obese lost 12 lbs with vitamin D in 6 months– RCT May 2015
- Impulsive or binge eating may be associated with low vitamin D – Nov 2018
- Dieters lost 5 more pounds if achieved more than 32 ng of vitamin D – RCT March 2014
- Healthy in Seven Days - Loading dose of Vitamin D – book 2014
- Overview Loading of vitamin D
- Daily, monthly Vitamin D had similar great benefits, more than 6 months needed – RCT Dec 2018
Items in both categories Obesity and Omega-3 are listed here:
- Omega-3 added to father’s diet reduced offspring’s obesity (mice) – June 2024
- Overweight needed more EPA (4 grams) to fight depression – RCT Aug 2022
- 4 weeks of Omega-3 better than 2 week 800 calorie diet before Bariatric Surgery – RCT March 2019
- Omega-3 may reduce weight gain and maintain weight loss – Aug 2018
- Severe Non-Alcoholic fatty liver disease treated by Omega-3 – RCT April 2018
- How Omega-3 fights metabolic syndrome and weight – Feb 2018
- NAFLD in children nicely treated by combination of Vitamin D and Omega-3 – RCT Dec 2016
- Obese youths 2X less likely to develop Metabolic Syndrome if take Omega-3 – RCT April 2016
- Omega-3 in infancy reduces Obesity following antibiotic (confirmed in rats, suspected in humans) – Feb 2016
- Huge increases in Omega-6 to Omega-3 ratio increase risk of obesity, etc. – March 2016
- Overweight women on caloric restriction diet got 3X benefits from 8 weeks of Omega-3 – RCT Dec 2015
- Hypothesis – Omega-6 to Omega-3 ratio increases obesity – Nov 2015
- Omega-3 reduced vitamin D3 inflammation for obese – RCT Jan 2013
- Reasons for low response to vitamin D
Overview Obesity and Vitamin D contains the following summary
- FACT: People who are obese have less vitamin D in their blood
- FACT: Obese need a higher dose of vitamin D to get to the same level of vit D
- FACT: When obese people lose weight the vitamin D level in their blood increases
- FACT: Adding Calcium, perhaps in the form of fortified milk, often reduces weight
- FACT: 168 trials for vitamin D intervention of obesity as of Dec 2021
- FACT: Less weight gain by senior women with > 30 ng of vitamin D
- FACT: Dieters lost additional 5 lbs if vitamin D supplementation got them above 32 ng - RCT
- FACT: Obese lost 3X more weight by adding $10 of Vitamin D
- FACT: Those with darker skins were more likely to be obese Sept 2014
- OBSERVATION: Low Vitamin D while pregnancy ==> more obese child and adult
- OBSERVATION: Many mammals had evolved to add fat and vitamin D in the autumn
- and lose both in the Spring - unfortunately humans have forgotten to lose the fat in the Spring
- SPECULATION: Low vitamin D might be one of the causes of obesity – several studies
- SUGGESTION: Probably need more than 4,000 IU to lose weight if very low on vitamin D due to
risk factors such as overweight, age, dark skin, live far from equator,shut-in, etc. - Obesity category has
442 items See also: Weight loss and Vitamin D - many studies Child Obesity and Vitamin D - many studies Obesity, Virus, and Vitamin D - many studies
Obese need more Vitamin D
- Normal weight Obese (50 ng = 125 nanomole)
Obesity is associated with low Vitamin D (and treated by D as well) – Aug 2019 has the following
Fast weight loss by Obese Adults: Summary of the data as of Sept 2019
1) 50,000 IU Vitamin D weekly for at least 6 months
If gut problems, should use a gut-friendly form of vitamin D
2) Add calorie restriction diet and light exercise after ~2 months*
* Vitamin D levels must be above 30ng/ml to help with weight loss
* Start losing weight 2 months sooner if take a 50,000 IU daily for a week
3) More weight loss if also add Magnesium or cofactors
30% Improved Vitamin D response with Magnesium - a Vitamin D Cofactor
Note: Magnesium reduces weight loss by itself as well
20% improved vitamin D response if also add Omega-3 a Vitamin D Cofactor
Note: Omega-3 reduces weight loss by itself as well
4) More weight loss if also improve activation of Vitamin D Receptor
Vitamin D Receptor activator: 0-30% improved Vitamin D response
Obesity 1.5 X more likely if poor Vitamin D Receptor – meta-analysis Nov 2019
Update Dec 2019 - Dr. Greger plant-based eating (not diet) for both weight loss and health.
His book does not mention Vitamin D nor Adenovirus
IN BRIEF This study explored the impact of correcting vitamin D deficiency on blood pressure, metabolic status, and weight loss in patients with fatigue and obesity refractory to conventional interventions such as diet, exercise, behavioral modification, and pharmacotherapy. Correction of vitamin D deficiency in such patients was found to be significantly associated with weight reduction and improved insulin sensitivity. Download the PDF from VitaminDWiki
Lost 19 lbs more if add vitamin D to calorie restriction and walking program– July 201818744 visitors, last modified 29 Aug, 2021, This page is in the following categories (# of items in each category)