Excess Belly Fat Is Linked to This Vitamin Deficiency

Supplements, from the gummy version aimed to grow longer hair to the ones targeting weight loss, are currently all the rage, and for good reason. Plenty of new research has been popping up lately, revealing amazing under-the-radar benefits of supplements that many of us haven't thought to try. However, there’s one option that studies have shown significant results (much more than quite a few others), and a new study is reaffirming just how important this vitamin actually is.

Vitamin D, which is usually associated with bone health, has yet another major benefit. According to a new study, higher levels of belly fat and larger waistlines are more common in people with lower levels of this vitamin.

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The study, which was conducted by VU University Medical Center and Leiden University Medical Center in the Netherlands, researched the link between obesity and low vitamin D levels, Medical News Today reports. Focusing on women aged 45 to 65, researchers analyzed their total fat, belly fat sitting under the skin, fat around the organs and fat in the liver. The findings revealed that both total and abdominal fat were connected to lower levels of vitamin D.

Although, the causal relationship between vitamin D and belly fat isn’t fully known just yet. It’s unclear whether a deficiency in vitamin D causes excess belly fat or if excess belly fat causes a deficiency of vitamin D. "Due to the observational nature of this study, we cannot draw a conclusion on the direction or cause of the association between obesity and vitamin D levels,” says Rachida Rafiq, lead researcher on the study. “However, this strong association may point to a possible role for vitamin D in abdominal fat storage and function.”

So, considering an estimated 40 percent of the United States population is deficient in vitamin D, it’s important to get your own levels checked by a doctor. After all, these findings prove just how important sufficient levels of vitamin D actually are.