Vitamin D supplementation and bone health in post-menopausal women: a 24-month randomized controlled intervention with enhanced bioavailability formulations.
Liposomal vitamin D3 increased femoral neck bone density more than placebo over 24 months.
Vitamin D supplementation and bone health in post-menopausal women: a 24-month randomized controlled intervention with enhanced bioavailability formulations.
Postmenopausal osteoporosis is a major public health issue affecting over one billion people worldwide.
Post-menopausal women's bone mineral density (bone mineral density), bone turnover markers, and fracture risk over a 24-month period were evaluated using regular cholecalciferol, micronized cholecalciferol, and liposomal vitamin D3 combined with calcium supplements.
Using age and baseline 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] levels, 612 post-menopausal women (ages 50-75 years) with T-scores ranging from -1.5 to -2.5 on dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) were randomly assigned to one of four groups: regular cholecalciferol (1200 IU/day + 1000 mg calcium, n = 153), micronized cholecalciferol (1200 IU/day + 1000 mg calcium, n = 153), liposomal vitamin D3 (800 IU/day + 1000 mg calcium, n = 153), or placebo (n = 153).
femoral neck bone density improved more than with placebo
Mean serum 25(OH)D levels were substantially higher (p = 0.003) in the liposomal group (38.2 ± 7.5 ng/mL) than those in the control cholecalciferol group (28.5 ± 6.8 ng/mL).
The liposomal form showed the highest ratio (2.4 ± 0.6 versus 1.8 ± 0.5 placebo; p = 0.001); hence, bone-specific alkaline phosphatase/CTX ratios were significantly better in all the active treatment groups.
Greater success in raising bone mineral density and lowering indicators of bone turnover with recent bioavailability-enhanced vitamin D3 formulas was observed in post-menopausal women, especially those on liposomal delivery systems.
These results suggest that public health guidelines and clinical practice have to take into account a rather important element impacting the efficacy of vitamin D supplements: formulation technology.