Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS. Calcium and Vitamin D supplementation reduces fasting glucose by 17% in women with gestational diabetes.
Gestational diabetes is defined as “any degree of glucose intolerance during pregnancy” (1), affects approximately 7% of all pregnancies and results in more than 200,000 cases each year. (2) Gestational diabetes affects the mother late in pregnancy and can rise blood sugar levels in newborn, eventually getting stored as fat and result in “macrosomia”, or a “fat” baby (3). Gestational diabetes cost our healthcare system $636 million in 2010 (4).
Now a new study (5) suggests that calcium/vitamin D supplementation may produce a number of health benefits for those with gestational diabetes. In the study, 51 women between the ages of 18 and 40 and diagnosed with gestational diabetes at 24–28 weeks of pregnancy were given either calcium (1,000 milligrams daily) and vitamin D (a 50,000 IU pearl given twice (before the study began and at day 21) = 25 subjects) or placebo (26 subjects) for six weeks. Fasting blood samples were obtained before and after the study.
The researchers observed several significant improvements in the calcium-vitamin D group:
- A 17.4% decrease in fasting plasma glucose (5.14 to 4.25 milligrams/deciliter) compared to a 5.8% increase in the placebo group (4.42 to 4.68, p < 0.001)
- A 17.5% decrease in insulin levels (77.87 to 64.32 picomoles/Liter) compared to a 10.3% increase in the placebo group (88.39 to 97.56 pmol/L, p = 0.02)
- A 31.1% decrease in a measure of diabetes called HOMA-IR (2.93 to 2.02) compared to a 21.5% increase in the placebo group (2.93 to 3.56, p =0.001)
- A 7.9% decrease in LDL cholesterol levels (2.94 to 2.71 millimoles/Liter) compared to a 9.3% increase in the placebo group (2.79 to 3.05 mmol/L, p = 0.02)
- A 11.4% decrease in the ratio of total cholesterol to HDL cholesterol (4.32 to 3.83) compared to a 4.5% increase in the placebo group (3.93 to 4.11, p =0.003)
- A 12.3% increase in HDL cholesterol levels (1.22 to 1.37 mmol/L) compared to a 1.5% decrease in the placebo group (1.36 to 1.34 mmol/L, p = 0.01)
What’s more, those taking calcium and vitamin D had only a 2% increase in a measure of cell damage called malondialdehyde (2.99 to 3.05 micromoles/Liter) compared to a 34.5% increase in the placebo group (2.69 to 3.62 micromol/L, p = 0.03).
For the researchers, “Calcium and vitamin D supplementation in pregnant women with GDM had beneficial effects on glucose metabolism, lipid profiles and biomarkers of oxidative stress.”
Source: Asemi, Zatollah, Maryam Karamali, and Ahmad Esmaillzadeh. “Effects of calcium–vitamin D co-supplementation on glycaemic control, inflammation and oxidative stress in gestational diabetes: a randomised placebo-controlled trial.” Diabetologia 57.9 (2014): 1798-1806.
Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2014
Posted July 9, 2014.
References:
- Metzger BE, Coustan DR (Eds.): Proceedings of the Fourth International Work-shop-Conference on Gestational Diabetes Mellitus. Diabetes Care 21 (Suppl. 2):B1–B167, 1998
- Gestational Diabetes Mellitus. Diabetes Care 2003; 26: 103S-105S
- “Gestational Diabetes” posted on the American Diabetes Association Website
- Dall TM. The Economic Burden Of Diabetes. Health Affairs, Supplement 2010; 29(2): 297-303.
- Asimi Z. Effects of calcium-vitaminDco-supplementation on glycaemiccontrol, inflammation and oxidativestress in gestationaldiabetes: a randomisedplacebo-controlledtrial.
