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Vitamin D3 supplements failed to reduce CVD risk factors in postmenopausal patients
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Observational studies have shown a link between low 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels and cardiovascular events and mortality, but researchers have discovered that improving vitamin D status will not lead to a reduction of cardiovascular disease risk factors.
In a parallel-group, double blind, placebo-controlled, randomized controlled trial, researchers from the Clinical Research Facility at University of Aberdeen, United Kingdom, recruited 305 healthy, postmenopausal women aged 60 to 70 years to determine whether daily doses of vitamin D3 at 400 IU or 1,000 IU daily or placebo for 1 year affected their CVD risk.
“Although we found no effect of vitamin D3 on markers of CVD risk, our results do not exclude potential benefits from supplementation in different patient populations such as a high-risk study population with multiple clinical risk factors, or in a large-scale study population assessing incident CVD events as primary prespecified outcomes,” the researchers wrote.
According to researchers, primary study outcomes were serum lipid profile, estimate of insulin resistance, inflammatory biomarkers and blood pressure. At 12 months, the researchers found no difference in mean change for any of the primary outcomes of CVD risk factors between treatment groups, they wrote.
Of the 305 patients, 265 (87%) completed all study visits. Researchers found that minimal differences between groups for serum apolipoprotein B100 change were not statistically significant (P=.04). Using a linear mixed model, they reported no significant seasonal variation in systolic or diastolic BP independent of vitamin D dose (P<.001).
Researchers wrote that postmenopausal women administered 400 IU or 1,000 IU vitamin D3 daily for 1 year did not reduce CVD risk factors. However, they suggest that further studies on vitamin D should examine the data suggesting seasonally affected BP.
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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