Vitamin D Has a New Benefit: Renowned Journal

This article originally appeared in The Epoch Times and was republished with permission.

Guest post by Zachary Stieber

A high dose of vitamin D could improve the function of insulin-producing beta cells in children and young adults recently diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.

The discovery, published in JAMA Network Open, could mean that a more cost-effective way of managing the disease affecting 1.45 million Americans has been on pharmacy shelves all along.

“Type 1 diabetes affects millions of people and treatment options can often be costly,” Dr. Benjamin Nwosu, chief of endocrinology and director of the diabetes center at Cohen Children’s Medical Center and the principal author of the research paper, said in a press release. “It is exciting to know that vitamin D could protect the beta cells of the pancreas and increase the natural production of good and functional insulin in these patients.”

People with Type 1 diabetes do not make enough insulin, the hormone responsible for producing and moving blood sugar into the body’s cells for energy. Without enough insulin, blood sugar can’t get into the cells and stays trapped in the bloodstream, which causes diabetes symptoms. Complications of Type 1 diabetes include heart disease, stroke, circulatory problems, eye issues, nerve damage, kidney disease, and gum disease.

How Vitamin D Helps Manage Type 1 Diabetes

Dr. Nwosu and his team uncovered vitamin D’s effects on diabetes by conducting a 12-month trial with 36 youths between the ages of 10 and 21. The average age of the participants was 13. Most of the participants were boys (24).

During the trial, Dr. Nwosu and his team randomly provided the participants with either a dose of ergocalciferol—a form of vitamin D, also known as vitamin D2—or a placebo. The research team found that taking the vitamin D supplement helped the body reduce the proinsulin to C-peptide ratio and delayed the loss of C-peptide more than the placebo. When C-peptide is present, the body is still producing insulin; in other words, the young people’s bodies made insulin that worked the way it was supposed to work.

Dr. Nwosu said slowing down C-peptide loss and improving the function of insulin-producing cells could extend the “honeymoon phase” of Type 1 diabetes.

Read the full story in The Epoch Times.