Bibliometric Analysis of Vitamin D and Obesity Research over the Period 2000 to 2023

Overview

Journal Front Pharmacol

Date 2024 Aug 2

PMID 39092232

Authors

Xudong Song

Senhua Qin

Shuxin Chen

Can Zhang

Lin Lin

Ziyi Song

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: Globally, the incidence rates of obesity and its related diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes, are continuously rising, posing a significant public health challenge. Studies have indicated a potential correlation between vitamin D deficiency and obesity. However, a quantitative analysis of the studies related vitamin D and obesity is lacking. This investigation aims to fill this gap by providing a comprehensive bibliometric analysis to uncover the collaborative networks, research hotspots, and evolutionary trends within the field of vitamin D and obesity research.

Methods: This study retrieved literature related to vitamin D and obesity from the Web of Science database spanning from 2000 to 2023. Bibliometric analysis was conducted using tools such as HistCite, VOSviewer, and CiteSpace to excavate multi-dimensional information including countries, institutions, authors, journals, citations, and keywords.

Results: A total of 6,144 records were retrieved, involving 123 countries, 6,726 institutions, and 28,156 authors, published in 1,551 journals. The number of published papers and citations showed a generally increasing trend. The United States led in terms of publication volume and influence, with journals such as Nutrients and Obesity Surgery having the highest publication counts. Nasser M. Al-Daghri was the most prolific and influential author. Keyword clustering revealed that research topics covered metabolic health, nutrition, immunity, and bariatric surgery. Citation burst analysis indicated a shift in research focus from the relationship between dietary calcium and obesity to the preventive effects of vitamin D supplementation on metabolic diseases.

Conclusion: The application of bibliometric methods to analyze the research literature in the fields of obesity and vitamin D has provided a comprehensive understanding of the collaborative networks, key research focus, and evolutionary trends in this field, offering insights for guiding future research directions.

Citing Articles

Mapping the landscape of vitamin D in cancer studies: a systematic global investigation.

Faryabi A, Salari M, Dalvand A, Akbarniakhaky H, Mohammadi G, Aazami H J Diabetes Metab Disord. 2025; 24(1):78.

PMID: 40078705 PMC: 11893971. DOI: 10.1007/s40200-025-01594-9.

A cohort study of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels and the risk of hyperlipidaemia in adults.

Liu Z, Liu S, Yao X, Wang C, Song Y, Bi Y Front Nutr. 2025; 11:1492621.

PMID: 39925969 PMC: 11802281. DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2024.1492621.

Discovery of Non-Peptide GLP-1 Positive Allosteric Modulators from Natural Products: Virtual Screening, Molecular Dynamics, ADMET Profiling, Repurposing, and Chemical Scaffolds Identification.

Gomaa M, Alturki M, Tawfeeq N, Hussein D, Pottoo F, Al Khzem A Pharmaceutics. 2025; 16(12.

PMID: 39771585 PMC: 11679513. DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics16121607.

References

He W, Deng Y, Luo X . Bibliometric analysis of the global research status and trends of the association between Vitamin D and infections from 2001 to 2021. Front Public Health. 2022; 10:934106. PMC: 9386288. DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.934106. View

. Worldwide trends in underweight and obesity from 1990 to 2022: a pooled analysis of 3663 population-representative studies with 222 million children, adolescents, and adults. Lancet. 2024; 403(10431):1027-1050. PMC: 7615769. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(23)02750-2. View

Goldner W, Stoner J, Thompson J, Taylor K, Larson L, Erickson J . Prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency and deficiency in morbidly obese patients: a comparison with non-obese controls. Obes Surg. 2008; 18(2):145-50. DOI: 10.1007/s11695-007-9315-8. View

Kulda V . [Vitamin D metabolism]. Vnitr Lek. 2012; 58(5):400-4. View

Sneve M, Figenschau Y, Jorde R . Supplementation with cholecalciferol does not result in weight reduction in overweight and obese subjects. Eur J Endocrinol. 2008; 159(6):675-84. DOI: 10.1530/EJE-08-0339. View

Vimaleswaran K, Berry D, Lu C, Tikkanen E, Pilz S, Hiraki L . Causal relationship between obesity and vitamin D status: bi-directional Mendelian randomization analysis of multiple cohorts. PLoS Med. 2013; 10(2):e1001383. PMC: 3564800. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1001383. View

Snijder M, van Dam R, Visser M, Deeg D, Dekker J, Bouter L . Adiposity in relation to vitamin D status and parathyroid hormone levels: a population-based study in older men and women. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2005; 90(7):4119-23. DOI: 10.1210/jc.2005-0216. View

Narvaez C, Matthews D, Broun E, Chan M, Welsh J . Lean phenotype and resistance to diet-induced obesity in vitamin D receptor knockout mice correlates with induction of uncoupling protein-1 in white adipose tissue. Endocrinology. 2008; 150(2):651-61. PMC: 2646525. DOI: 10.1210/en.2008-1118. View

Wang T, Pencina M, Booth S, Jacques P, Ingelsson E, Lanier K . Vitamin D deficiency and risk of cardiovascular disease. Circulation. 2008; 117(4):503-11. PMC: 2726624. DOI: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.107.706127. View

10.

Bischoff-Ferrari H, Giovannucci E, Willett W, Dietrich T, Dawson-Hughes B . Estimation of optimal serum concentrations of 25-hydroxyvitamin D for multiple health outcomes. Am J Clin Nutr. 2006; 84(1):18-28. DOI: 10.1093/ajcn/84.1.18. View

11.

Manson J, Cook N, Lee I, Christen W, Bassuk S, Mora S . Vitamin D Supplements and Prevention of Cancer and Cardiovascular Disease. N Engl J Med. 2018; 380(1):33-44. PMC: 6425757. DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa1809944. View

12.

Wong K, Szeto F, Zhang W, Ye H, Kong J, Zhang Z . Involvement of the vitamin D receptor in energy metabolism: regulation of uncoupling proteins. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2009; 296(4):E820-8. PMC: 2670625. DOI: 10.1152/ajpendo.90763.2008. View

13.

Drincic A, Armas L, Van Diest E, Heaney R . Volumetric dilution, rather than sequestration best explains the low vitamin D status of obesity. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2012; 20(7):1444-8. DOI: 10.1038/oby.2011.404. View

14.

Alemzadeh R, Kichler J, Babar G, Calhoun M . Hypovitaminosis D in obese children and adolescents: relationship with adiposity, insulin sensitivity, ethnicity, and season. Metabolism. 2008; 57(2):183-91. DOI: 10.1016/j.metabol.2007.08.023. View

15.

Lu Y, Zhang X, Wu S, Zhang S, Tan J . A bibliometric analysis of global research on vitamin D and reproductive health between 2012 and 2021: Learning from the past, planning for the future. Front Nutr. 2022; 9:973332. PMC: 9493010. DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2022.973332. View

16.

Ross A, Manson J, Abrams S, Aloia J, Brannon P, Clinton S . The 2011 report on dietary reference intakes for calcium and vitamin D from the Institute of Medicine: what clinicians need to know. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2010; 96(1):53-8. PMC: 3046611. DOI: 10.1210/jc.2010-2704. View

17.

Pittas A, Dawson-Hughes B, Sheehan P, Ware J, Knowler W, Aroda V . Vitamin D Supplementation and Prevention of Type 2 Diabetes. N Engl J Med. 2019; 381(6):520-530. PMC: 6993875. DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa1900906. View

18.

Malik A, Baig M, Butt N, Imran M, Alzahrani S, Gazzaz Z . Bibliometric Analysis of Global Research Productivity on Vitamin D and Bone Metabolism (2001-2020): Learn from the Past to Plan Future. Nutrients. 2022; 14(3). PMC: 8838326. DOI: 10.3390/nu14030542. View

19.

Walsh J, Evans A, Bowles S, Naylor K, Jones K, Schoenmakers I . Free 25-hydroxyvitamin D is low in obesity, but there are no adverse associations with bone health. Am J Clin Nutr. 2016; 103(6):1465-71. DOI: 10.3945/ajcn.115.120139. View

20.

Arunabh S, Pollack S, Yeh J, Aloia J . Body fat content and 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels in healthy women. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2003; 88(1):157-61. DOI: 10.1210/jc.2002-020978. View