Vitamin D and Insulin Action and Secretion –An Overview of Current Understanding and Future Perspectives

Abstract

Impaired vitamin D status has been linked to the development of type 2 diabetes. This review summarises the current knowledge of the effects of vitamin D on insulin action and secretion. Animal andin vitrostudies suggest an effect of vitamin D on insulin action and secretion. The effects of vitamin D status in humans are not as clear, however, and cross-sectional data on insulin sensitivity and secretion are inconclusive. Intervention studies are few and often suffer from inadequate design including short duration, low sample power, low dose of vitamin D or use of indirect measures of insulin sensitivity and secretion. Despite some plausible biological mechanisms for an effect of vitamin D on both insulin secretion and action, more evidence is needed to decide whether vitamin D plays an important role in the pathophysiology of type 2 diabetes.