New evidence
Vitamin D linked to a moderate gain in muscle mass in chronic kidney disease patients — but the evidence comes from a single systematic review with a wide confidence interval.
This is early data from a clinical population, so the finding is intriguing but far from ready to apply to healthy adults or to guide supplement decisions.
A systematic review of chronic kidney disease patients found that vitamin D supplementation was associated with a moderate increase in muscle mass (standardized mean difference 0.68). However, the confidence interval was wide (0.09 to 1.27), meaning the true effect could be small or much larger, and the review did not identify a clear winner among the supplements tested. Since this is among the first pooled analyses on this specific pairing, the result should be treated as preliminary.
Where this fits in the evidence
This is among the first studies we've indexed on Vitamin D for Increased Muscle Mass — treat it as an early signal until more research accumulates.
The study
- Systematic Review
- n = 879
- 2026-04-08
- Frontiers in nutrition
This is a plain-language summary of a research finding, not medical advice. Pillser surfaces research signals to help you decide what's worth investigating — always consult a qualified professional before changing what you take.