Effect of vitamin D supplementation on inflammatory biomarkers in children and adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials

Background: Numerous clinical trials have examined the beneficial effects of vitamin D supplementation in children and adolescents; however, the results of these studies are inconsistent. Therefore, we conducted the current systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the effect of vitamin D supplementation on inflammatory biomarkers in children and adolescents.Material and Methods: Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane library databases and EMBASE were searched between January 1990 and June 2024. Randomized controlled trials comparing vitamin D supplementation with a placebo or inflammatory biomarkers were included. Meta‐analysis was performed using random‐effects model. Publication bias was evaluated using standard methods and subgroup analysis and meta‐regression were carried out.Results: A total of 2320 articles were identified through database searching, of which, eleven RCTs the fifteen datasets were included in the meta‐analysis. Vitamin D supplementation does not have any significant effect on CRP status Weighed Mean Difference (WMD): -0.14 mg/dl, 95%CI: -0.53to0.24, P=0.465), IL-10 (WMD: 0.6, 95%CI: -0.29to0.148, P=0.186, IL-6 (WMD: 0.27, 95%CI: -0.07to0.61, P=0.125), and TNF (WMD: -1.50, 95% CI: -1.58to0.56, P=0.346).Conclusion: In conclusion, results from our meta-analysis offers that vitamin D supplementation doesn’t change inflammatory biomarkers significantly in children and adolescents.