Originally published April 17 2011
Vitamin D helps diabetics maintain healthy blood sugar levels
by Jonathan Benson, staff writer
(NaturalNews) An Iranian study has found yet another way natural way by which diabetics can help keep their blood sugar levels in check. Researchers from the National Nutrition and Food Technology Research Institute in Iran discovered recently that when given extra vitamin D as part of their daily diets for several months, diabetics' blood sugar levels began to drop.
Tirang Neyestani and colleagues divided 90 adult participants with diabetes into three test groups. The first group received plain yogurt with no added vitamin D, the second group received a vitamin D-fortified yogurt, and the final group received a vitamin D-fortified yogurt with added calcium. The vitamin D yogurt in the two latter groups contained a moderate 500 international units (IU) of the vitamin.
At the end of three months, the plain yogurt group experienced a nine percent average increase in blood sugar levels, while the two vitamin D groups actually experienced a seven percent decrease in blood sugar levels. And at the end of the entire 12-week study, Neyestani told Reuters that the vitamin D groups experienced a "relatively remarkable improvement" in their conditions.
Another study published in the British Journal of Nutrition in 2010 found similar results in diabetics, except that study used high-dose vitamin D supplements instead. Researchers from Massey University in New Zealand discovered that when women were given 4,000 IU of vitamin D every day, not only did their blood serum levels of vitamin D increase, but so did their insulin sensitivity. At the same time, participants' insulin resistance also decreased as a result of vitamin D supplementation (http://www.naturalnews.com/028355_vitamin_D_...).
To view an archive of studies about vitamin D and diabetes, visit:
http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/researchDiabe...
Sources for this story include:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/23/us...
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