Research
Hormonal
High levels of parathyroid hormone (PTH) are associated with insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, and vitamin D's ability to suppress PTH may contribute to improved insulin sensitivity.
If you have high parathyroid hormone levels, addressing vitamin D deficiency may help lower PTH, which is linked to a higher risk of diabetes. This is one piece of the metabolic puzzle.
ModerateSupportsMEDIUM confidence
These actions may be mediated by systemic or local production of 1,25(OH)2D or by suppression of parathyroid hormone, which may function to negatively affect insulin sensitivity... It is well established that there is an increased prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (8 %) and glucose intolerance (40 %) in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism.
Why this rating
Strong association in hyperparathyroidism, but mixed results in general population studies.
Source
Vitamin D: emerging new roles in insulin sensitivity
Dorothy Teegarden et al. · Nutrition Research Reviews · 2009
DOI 10.1017/s0954422409389301
narrative_reviewCited 262×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Higher vitamin D status (serum 25(OH)D) is associated with improved insulin sensitivity and a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, potentially mediated by increased muscle mass, reduced parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels, and enhanced insulin receptor expression.Good
- Vitamin D supplementation improves muscle function and reduces fall risk in elderly populations, which indirectly supports insulin sensitivity by preserving lean muscle mass.Good
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