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Lookup NU author(s): Professor Bernard Corfe
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
© 2021, The Author(s).Purpose: Several small trials suggest a benefit of vitamin D supplementation in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). The generalisability of these reports is limited by their design and scale. This study aimed to assess whether vitamin D supplementation improved IBS symptoms in a UK community setting. Methods: This was a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Participants were recruited from the community in winter months between December 2017 and March 2019. 135 participants received either vitamin D (3,000 IU p.d.) or placebo for 12 weeks. The primary outcome measure was change in IBS symptom severity; secondary outcomes included change in IBS-related quality of life. Results: The participants were analysed on an intent-to-treat basis. 60% of participants were vitamin D deficient or insufficient at baseline. Although vitamin D levels increased in the intervention arm relative to placebo (45.1 ± 32.88 nmol/L vs 3.1 ± 26.15 nmol/L; p < 0.001). There was no difference in the change of IBS symptom severity between the active and placebo trial arms (− 62.5 ± 91.57 vs – 75.2 ± 84.35, p = 0.426) over time. Similarly there was no difference between trial arms in τhe change in quality of life (− 7.7 ± 25.36 vs – 11.31 ± 25.02, p = 0.427). Conclusions: There is no case for advocating use of vitamin D in the management of IBS symptoms. The prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency suggests routine screening and supplementation should be implemented in this population for general health reasons. This trial was retrospectively registered with ISRCTN (ISRCTN13277340) on 24th April 2018 after recruiting had been initiated.
Author(s): Williams CE, Williams EA, Corfe BM
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: European Journal of Nutrition
Year: 2022
Volume: 61
Issue: 1
Pages: 299-308
Print publication date: 01/02/2022
Online publication date: 30/07/2021
Acceptance date: 28/06/2021
Date deposited: 01/06/2022
ISSN (print): 1436-6207
ISSN (electronic): 1436-6215
Publisher: Springer Nature
URL: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-021-02633-w
DOI: 10.1007/s00394-021-02633-w
PubMed id: 34328539
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