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VA, UNMC conducting 4-year study on Vitamin D and diabetes

VA and UNMC researchers are teaming up to study whether Vitamin D can help prevent or delay the onset of diabetes in high-risk pre-diabetic patients.

Researchers are hoping to enroll 2,500 people for the four-year study. They want to know if 4,000 international units of Vitamin D every day will delay or prevent the onset of type two diabetes.

Dr. Cyrus DeSouza, who's leading the study for the Omaha VA Medical Center and UNMC, says the results could have a significant impact on the treatment of pre-diabetes.

"Vitamin D is something that is quite safe, it is quite cheap, and if it was able to have a risk reduction for these people, it would save a huge number of dollars in health care costs."

Dr. DeSouza says Vitamin D has been shown in smaller studies to have cardiovascular benefits. He says it’s also been shown to improve insulin resistance.

More information on the study is available at www.d2dstudy.org.