Obesity is associated with vitamin D deficiency but deficiency does not lead to obesity – Aug 2016

Physiological Functions of Vitamin D in Adipose Tissue

The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, online 9 August 2016, doi:10.1016/j.jsbmb.2016.08.004
Manal A. Abbas,

Highlights

• Vitamin D metabolizing enzymes and VDR are expressed in adipose tissue.
• Vitamin D regulates adipogenesis and adipocyte apoptosis.
• Through its genomic action, vitamin D regulates energy metabolism by controlling the expression of uncoupling proteins and the appetite suppressing hormone leptin.
• mVDR is present in caveolae of the plasma membrane and is the same as the classic nVDR.
• Vitamin D reduces adipose tissue inflammation.
• Obesity is associated with vitamin D deficiency but vitamin D deficiency does not predispose to obesity.

Adipose tissue has long been identified as the major site of vitamin D storage. Recent studies have demonstrated that VDR and vitamin D metabolizing enzymes are expressed in adipocytes. Furthermore, it has been shown that vitamin D regulates adipogenic gene expression as well as adipocyte apoptosis. Vitamin D is active in adipocytes at all levels. It interacts with membrane receptors, adaptor molecules, and nuclear coregulator proteins. Several functions of unliganded nVDR were discovered by studying human samples from patients having hereditary vitamin D resistant rickets, transgenic mice overexpressing the VDR and VDR knockout mice. Through its genomic action, vitamin D participates in the regulation of energy metabolism by controlling the expression of uncoupling proteins. In vitro, vitamin D stimulates lipogenesis and inhibits lipolysis by interacting with mVDR. mVDR is present in caveolae of the plasma membrane and is the same as the classic nVDR. In addition, vitamin D affects directly the expression of the appetite regulating hormone, leptin. Some researchers reported also that vitamin D regulates the expression of the insulin sensitizing hormone, adiponectin. Vitamin D reduced cytokine release and adipose tissue inflammation through the inhibition of NF-κB signaling. Scientific research investigating the role of adipose tissue resident immune cells in the pathogenesis of obesity-associated inflammation is scarce. Obesity is associated with vitamin D deficiency. However there is no scientific evidence to prove that vitamin D deficiency predispose to obesity. Vitamin D supplementation may prevent obesity but it does not lead to weight loss in obese subjects.

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See also VitaminDWiki

• Increase in Vitamin D deficiency with weight and skin darkness – chart – March 2016
• Overweight women on caloric restriction diet got 3X benefits from 8 weeks of Omega-3 – RCT Dec 2015
• Obesity causes 20 percent of all cancer, low vitamin D may be the connection – meta-analysis - Sept 2014
• Overweight and obese lost 12 lbs with vitamin D in 6 months– RCT May 2015

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 441 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)

Click here for 2014 study

• Normal weight     Obese     (50 ng = 125 nanomole)

Click here for 2014 study