Hypovitaminosis D: a modifiable risk factor for noncommunicable diseases

Abstract

Over the years, a broad spectrum of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), including osteoporosis, asthma, diabetes, cancer, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases, chronic kidney and liver diseases have been linked to poor vitamin D levels. This review presents the circumstances leading to hypovitaminosis D and how such a deficiency can eventually independently induce the development of NCDs. PubMed and EMBASE databases were used to identify all studies that assessed the association between vitamin D and various NCDs up until February 2022, without language restrictions. Available evidence from observational studies suggests a strong link between vitamin D and many NCDs. However, underlying molecular mechanisms of vitamin D mode of action that contribute to the pathophysiology of these non-communicable diseases are often complex and not fully understood. Vitamin D and its biologically active analogs have shown therapeutic potential for treatment or prevention of some NCDs. However, large-scale vitamin D supplementation trials have yet to confirm such a causal relationship. Further studies are required to clearly establish and understand the nature of NCDs association with vitamin D.