Vitamin D must be supplemented, a little bit, if you have type 2 diabetes or prediabetes.

At my Maine office-it’s still getting dark well-before 5 PM – and with the cold January – I have had no more than my cheeks exposed to the sun lately. I think the humans that traditionally survived in this climate ate a lot of animal fat from from both land and sea. I try, but my blood vitamin D levels hover at or below 30 this time of year. And with my tendency toward insulin resistance – I can’t afford the low D as a variable – it can actually trigger my cells to be more insulin resistant and my sugar to elevate.  So I take heed of the study that shows both a cause and effect for low vitamin D and high blood sugar(see below).

Please note however, that a low vitamin D is not enough alone to cause you to have high blood sugar, but if your vitamin D is inadequate, you will not successfully correct the insulin resistance. Moderate oral doses of 1000-2000 iu per day, even though this does not raise blood levels much, is enough to prevent the insulin resistant effect on your body. If you  have or someone you know has type 2 diabetes – a little vitamin D supplementation helps.

What do I take? I am still a cod liver oil fan – the vitamin D in Cod Liver Oil from either Carlson or Nordic Naturals provides the D WITH the essential fat that allows best absorption and utilization. I total about 2000 iu of vitamin D five days per week in the winter and half that in the summer months. If you take vitamin D in capsule form – take it with a fatty meal – which should be nearly every meal for those of us with IR!  In the meantime, I’ll enjoy the beacon of the longer days.

-Richard Maurer

Kostoglou-Athanassiou, I., et al. Vitamin D and Glycemic Control in Diabetes Mellitus Type 2. Ther Adv in Endo and Metab. 2013;4(4):122-128.