The Association Between Hypothyroidism and Vitamin D Deficiency in Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Overweight or Obese Female Adults: A Case-Control Study.
4 affiliations
- 1Student Research Committee, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
- 2Endocrine Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
- 3Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, University of Western Ontario, London, ONN6A 5B9, Canada.
- 4Nutrition Research Center, Department of Biochemistry and Diet Therapy, Faculty of Nutrition and Food Sciences, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
Abstract
Introduction
While evidence suggests a link between serum vitamin D levels and hypothyroidism, this relationship remains unclear, particularly within non-autoimmune hypothyroid conditions. This study aimed to investigate the association between vitamin D deficiency (VDD) and non-autoimmune hypothyroidism in overweight/obese patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).Methods
This case-control study included 154 overweight or obese (body mass index [BMI]≥25 kg/m²) female adults diagnosed with NAFLD based on ultrasonography findings. Seventy-seven patients with NAFLD and VDD (serum 25(OH)D concentration≤30 nmol/L) as the "Case" group and Seventy-seven age, and BMI-matched patients with NAFLD without VDD as the "Control" group were enrolled. Anthropometric parameters and serum levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), free triiodothyronine (FT3), free thyroxine (FT4) and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) were measured.Results
The baseline characteristics of the study showed no significant differences in age, anthropometric measures, or physical activity levels between the two groups. Analysis of weekly frequency consumption of vitamin D-rich foods revealed no notable differences between VDD cases and controls, except for a statistically significant difference in the consumption of low-fat cheese (P=0.024). Additionally, no significant association was identified between TSH levels and VDD in either crude or adjusted models, after accounting for potential confounders, including sun exposure duration, BMI, and serum ALT and AST levels. However, participants with low sun exposure (≤1 hour/day) were significantly more likely to have VDD (OR=3.62; 95% CI=1.52-8.60).Conclusion
Our results did not show association between serum vitamin D levels and non-autoimmune hypothyroidism in patients with NAFLD.
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BibTeX
@article{pourseyedi2026association,
title = {{The Association Between Hypothyroidism and Vitamin D Deficiency in Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Overweight or Obese Female Adults: A Case-Control Study.}},
author = {Nazanin Pourseyedi and Sara Arefhosseini and Helda Tutunchi and Saeed Ostadrahimi and Mehrangiz Ebrahimi-Mameghani},
journal = {Health promotion perspectives},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.34172/hpp.44592},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42968723},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - The Association Between Hypothyroidism and Vitamin D Deficiency in Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Overweight or Obese Female Adults: A Case-Control Study.
AU - Nazanin Pourseyedi
AU - Sara Arefhosseini
AU - Helda Tutunchi
AU - Saeed Ostadrahimi
AU - Mehrangiz Ebrahimi-Mameghani
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/21
JO - Health promotion perspectives
DO - 10.34172/hpp.44592
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42968723
AB - Introduction While evidence suggests a link between serum vitamin D levels and hypothyroidism, this relationship remains unclear, particularly within non-autoimmune hypothyroid conditions. This study aimed to investigate the association between vitamin D deficiency (VDD) and non-autoimmune hypothyroidism in overweight/obese patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).Methods This case-control study included 154 overweight or obese (body mass index [BMI]≥25 kg/m²) female adults diagnosed with NAFLD based on ultrasonography findings. Seventy-seven patients with NAFLD and VDD (serum 25(OH)D concentration≤30 nmol/L) as the "Case" group and Seventy-seven age, and BMI-matched patients with NAFLD without VDD as the "Control" group were enrolled. Anthropometric parameters and serum levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), free triiodothyronine (FT3), free thyroxine (FT4) and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) were measured.Results The baseline characteristics of the study showed no significant differences in age, anthropometric measures, or physical activity levels between the two groups. Analysis of weekly frequency consumption of vitamin D-rich foods revealed no notable differences between VDD cases and controls, except for a statistically significant difference in the consumption of low-fat cheese (P=0.024). Additionally, no significant association was identified between TSH levels and VDD in either crude or adjusted models, after accounting for potential confounders, including sun exposure duration, BMI, and serum ALT and AST levels. However, participants with low sun exposure (≤1 hour/day) were significantly more likely to have VDD (OR=3.62; 95% CI=1.52-8.60).Conclusion Our results did not show association between serum vitamin D levels and non-autoimmune hypothyroidism in patients with NAFLD.
SN - 2228-6497
ER -