Effects of Vitamin D Supplementation on IGF-1 and Calcitriol: A Randomized-Controlled Trial

Increasing evidence suggests a possible interaction between vitamin D and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1). We aimed to investigate effects of vitamin D supplementation on IGF-1 (primary outcome) and calcitriol (1,25(OH)₂D) concentrations (secondary outcome). This is a post-hoc analysis of the Styrian Vitamin D Hypertension Trial-a single-center, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial (RCT) conducted from 2011 to 2014 at the Medical University of Graz, Austria. Two-hundred subjects with arterial hypertension and 25(OH)D concentrations <30 ng/mL were randomized to either receive 2800 IU of vitamin D daily or placebo for eight weeks. A total of 175 participants (mean ± standard deviation age, 60 ± 11 years; 49% women) with available IGF-1 concentrations were included in the present analysis. At baseline, IGF-1 concentrations were significantly correlated with 1,25(OH)₂D (r = 0.21; p = 0.005) but not with 25(OH)D (r = -0.008; p = 0.91). In the RCT, vitamin D had no significant effect on IGF-1 (mean treatment effect 3.1; 95% confidence interval -5.6 to 11.9 ng/mL; p = 0.48), but it increased 1,25(OH)₂D concentrations (mean treatment effect 9.2; 95% confidence interval 4.4 to 13.9 pg/mL; p ≤ 0.001). In this RCT, in hypertensive patients with low 25(OH)D concentrations, there was no significant effect of vitamin D supplementation on IGF-1 concentrations. However, we observed a cross-sectional correlation between 1,25(OH)₂D and IGF-1 and an increase of 1,25(OH)₂D after vitamin D supplementation.