Relationship of vitamin D status and cardiometabolic risk factors in children and adolescents.

Metabolic syndrome is a constellation of cardiometabolic risk factors that includes insulin resistance, obesity, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia. A review of the literature was conducted to determine the relationship between low serum vitamin D status and risk factors for metabolic syndrome in children and adolescents. A review of human, animal, and cellular studies demonstrates conflicting evidence that a low serum vitamin D level is linked to the cause of obesity, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and insulin resistance. However, there does appear to be an association between low serum vitamin D and these features, especially obesity. Due to a lack of concrete evidence for causation, current recommendations of up to 600 IU of vitamin D daily should be supplied to prevent deficiency in children.