Can a Gluten-Free Diet Normalize Vitamin D Levels for Celiac Patients?

Celiac.com 08/16/2018 - What is the significance of vitamin D serum levels in adult celiac patients? A pair of researchers recently set out to assess the value and significance of 25(OH) and 1,25(OH) vitamin D serum levels in adult celiac patients through a comprehensive review of medical literature.

Researchers included F Zingone and C Ciacci are affiliated with the Gastroenterology Unit, Department of Surgery, Oncology and Gastroenterology, University of Padua, Padua, Italy; and the Celiac Center, AOU San Giovanni di Dio e Ruggi di Aragona, University of Salerno, Department of Medicine and Surgery, Salerno, Italy. 

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Within the wide spectrum of symptoms and alteration of systems that characterizes celiac disease, several studies indicate a low-level of vitamin D, therefore recent guidelines suggest its evaluation at the time of diagnosis. This review examines the data from existing studies in which vitamin D has been assessed in celiac patients. 

Our review indicates that most of the studies on vitamin D in adult celiac disease report a 25 (OH) vitamin D deficiency at diagnosis that disappears when the patient goes on a gluten-free diet, independently of any supplementation. Instead, the researchers found that levels of calcitriol, the active 1,25 (OH) form of vitamin D, fell within the normal range at the time of celiac diagnosis. 

Basically, their study strongly suggests that people with celiac disease can recover normal vitamin D levels through a gluten-free diet, without requiring any supplementation.

Source:

• Dig Liver Dis. 2018 Aug;50(8):757-760. doi: 10.1016/j.dld.2018.04.005. Epub 2018 Apr 13.