A systematic review of vanadium oral supplements for glycaemic control in type 2 diabetes mellitus.
What this study found
No rigorous evidence shows that oral vanadium supplementation improves glycaemic control in type 2 diabetes, so routine use cannot be recommended. Individual active arms did show within-group reductions in HbA1c and fasting glucose, such as HbA1c 8.1 to 7.6 (p < 0.01), 9.4 to 8.8 (p < 0.01), and 9.6 to 8.8 (p < 0.002), but these findings come from very small studies and do not establish efficacy. Gastrointestinal side effects were commonly reported, while no serious morbidities or deaths were noted. A large, rigorous randomized controlled trial is still needed.
- Study & population
- Systematic review of clinical trial evidence in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus.
- Intervention
- Oral vanadium supplementation was tested mainly as vanadyl sulphate across the included trials.
- Key limitation
- Evidence came from small, short-duration trials with low methodological quality and very small active-arm sample sizes.
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Open PDFOriginal abstract
OBJECTIVE To assess the effectiveness of oral vanadium supplementation for glycaemic control in type 2 diabetes by conducting a systematic review of the literature. DESIGN AND METHODS Eligible studies were identified by searching 14 databases using standardized terms. Experts, study authors and manufacturers were also contacted. Hand-searching was not undertaken. Selection criteria for inclusion in the review were controlled human trials of vanadium vs. placebo in adults with type 2 diabetes of minimum 2 months duration, and a minimum of 10 subjects per arm. Data extraction, assessment of study quality and outcome analysis were undertaken by two independent reviewers. RESULTS One hundred and fifty one studies were found but none met the inclusion criteria. We proceeded to summarize the state of existing evidence and plan for a future clinical trial by applying revised, less restrictive criteria to our search, for clinical trials of 30-150 mg daily oral vanadium supplementation in diabetic humans. Only five were identified. These demonstrated significant treatment-effects, but due to poor study quality, must be interpreted with caution. Treatment with vanadium often results in gastrointestinal side-effects. CONCLUSION There is no rigorous evidence that oral vanadium supplementation improves glycaemic control in type 2 diabetes. The routine use of vanadium for this purpose cannot be recommended. A large-scale randomized controlled trial is needed to address this clinical question.