Serum 25(OH)D and lipid levels in Chinese obese and normal weight males before and after oral vitamin D supplementation.

OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of oral vitamin D (VD) supplementation on VD status and serum lipid in Chinese obese and healthy normal-weight men. METHODS: Twenty-one obese men with their body mass index (BMI)>28 kg/m(2) served as an obese group and 22 healthy normal-weight men with their BMI<24 kg/m(2) served as a control group in this study. After they were given 50 000 IU of oral VD, once a week for 8 weeks, the serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] concentration was measured with an enzyme-immunoassay kit. RESULTS: After oral VD supplementation, the serum 25(OH)D concentration significantly increased from 46.1±9.1 nmol/L to 116.7±20.3 nmol/L in the obese subjects (P<0.01) and from 52.8±17.8 nmol/L to 181.3±30.2 nmol/L in the control ones (P=0.13). The serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) level was reduced within the normal reference range in the obese group. However, no significant change was observed in the level of other serum lipids (triglycerides, total cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol) in either of the two groups. CONCLUSION: The effect of high-dose oral VD supplementation is weaker on VD status in the obese group than in the control group. High-dose oral VD supplementation has no side effect on serum lipid level in obese and control groups.