27 September 2013
According to a new study the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency is high among Saudi Arabian adults, particularly for women and girls and young boys.
The observational study analyzed blood vitamin D concentrations of 245 male and 243 female Saudi Arab-ians with a mean age of 37.43 years (1). The study showed that 29% of participants were vitamin D deficient, 22.7% had insufficient levels and only 47.5% had adequate levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D. The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency or insufficiency was higher for women, younger participants and participants with anemia.
The researchers commented that wearing traditional clothes, deliberate avoidance of the sun, and inade-quate dietary intake are likely to be the principal causes of low vitamin D levels. The findings confirm results from an earlier study reporting men had higher vitamin D levels due to greater sun exposure and wearing lighter clothes at home (2). The high prevalence of insufficient vitamin D supply is a cause for concern given that there is currently no public health policy for vitamin D in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the scientists said.
1 July 2013
A new genetic study from the UK reports that there is a clear causal link between low blood concentrations of vitamin D and the development of hypertension.
7 October 2010
Vitamin D supplements may not improve bone density in healthy children with normal vitamin D status, a new Australian review suggests.
23 September 2013
A new review from Germany reports that of almost 200 population-based studies worldwide more than 37% report that inadequate blood vitamin D levels are wide-spread.
