Prevalence and determinants of profound vitamin D deficiency (25-hydroxyvitamin D <10 nmol/L) in the UK Biobank and potential implications for disease association studies

IF 2.7 2区 生物学 Q3 BIOCHEMISTRY & MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
Rasha Shraim , Margaret M. Brennan , Jos van Geffen , Lina Zgaga
{"title":"Prevalence and determinants of profound vitamin D deficiency (25-hydroxyvitamin D <10 nmol/L) in the UK Biobank and potential implications for disease association studies","authors":"Rasha Shraim ,&nbsp;Margaret M. Brennan ,&nbsp;Jos van Geffen ,&nbsp;Lina Zgaga","doi":"10.1016/j.jsbmb.2025.106737","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) is the principal biomarker of vitamin D status. Values below the assay detection limit (&lt;10 nmol/L) are often reported as missing. Thus the most severely deficient participants are excluded from research which can lead to inaccurate findings such as underestimated prevalence of deficiency, overlooked risk factors, and biased evaluation of disease associations.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>In total 369,626 individuals from the UK Biobank cohort were included in this study. Data on 25OHD concentration and relevant demographic and lifestyle factors such as age, supplement intake, diet, and time spent outdoors were used in the analyses. Ambient UVB radiation was approximated for each participant. 25OHD was evaluated as a categorical outcome and we reintroduced participants with 25OHD values &lt; 10 nmol/L (conventionally reported as missing values) back to the dataset. Adjusted regression models were used to investigate the determinants of profound (25OHD &lt;10 nmol/L) and severe (10–25 nmol/L) vitamin D deficiency and to assess disease associations (with 25–50 nmol/L as the reference category).</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>1,784 (0.48 %) individuals were profoundly deficient and a further 47,226 (12.78 %) individuals were severely vitamin D deficient. The proportions of profoundly and severely deficient were highest among Asians, 9 % and 47 %, respectively. Ambient UVB radiation was the second strongest predictor: comparing the lowest vs. highest quartile, the risk of profound deficiency was 17-fold increased and that of severe deficiency 7.5-fold increased. Use of vitamin D supplements substantially reduced risk of profound (4.4-fold) and severe (2.5-fold) deficiency, as did fish intake (5- and 1.9-fold, respectively). Profound deficiency was more strongly associated with chronic illness, diabetes, and emphysema compared to severe deficiency.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>The prevalence of profound and severe vitamin D deficiency among Asian and Black ethnicities in the UK is high and requires targeted action. Solar radiation is potent in protecting against profound and severe vitamin D deficiency. Studies evaluating the relationship between vitamin D status and other health outcomes may be biased if profoundly deficient participants are excluded.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51106,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology","volume":"250 ","pages":"Article 106737"},"PeriodicalIF":2.7000,"publicationDate":"2025-03-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology","FirstCategoryId":"99","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960076025000652","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"BIOCHEMISTRY & MOLECULAR BIOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background

25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) is the principal biomarker of vitamin D status. Values below the assay detection limit (<10 nmol/L) are often reported as missing. Thus the most severely deficient participants are excluded from research which can lead to inaccurate findings such as underestimated prevalence of deficiency, overlooked risk factors, and biased evaluation of disease associations.

Methods

In total 369,626 individuals from the UK Biobank cohort were included in this study. Data on 25OHD concentration and relevant demographic and lifestyle factors such as age, supplement intake, diet, and time spent outdoors were used in the analyses. Ambient UVB radiation was approximated for each participant. 25OHD was evaluated as a categorical outcome and we reintroduced participants with 25OHD values < 10 nmol/L (conventionally reported as missing values) back to the dataset. Adjusted regression models were used to investigate the determinants of profound (25OHD <10 nmol/L) and severe (10–25 nmol/L) vitamin D deficiency and to assess disease associations (with 25–50 nmol/L as the reference category).

Results

1,784 (0.48 %) individuals were profoundly deficient and a further 47,226 (12.78 %) individuals were severely vitamin D deficient. The proportions of profoundly and severely deficient were highest among Asians, 9 % and 47 %, respectively. Ambient UVB radiation was the second strongest predictor: comparing the lowest vs. highest quartile, the risk of profound deficiency was 17-fold increased and that of severe deficiency 7.5-fold increased. Use of vitamin D supplements substantially reduced risk of profound (4.4-fold) and severe (2.5-fold) deficiency, as did fish intake (5- and 1.9-fold, respectively). Profound deficiency was more strongly associated with chronic illness, diabetes, and emphysema compared to severe deficiency.

Conclusion

The prevalence of profound and severe vitamin D deficiency among Asian and Black ethnicities in the UK is high and requires targeted action. Solar radiation is potent in protecting against profound and severe vitamin D deficiency. Studies evaluating the relationship between vitamin D status and other health outcomes may be biased if profoundly deficient participants are excluded.
求助全文
约1分钟内获得全文 求助全文
来源期刊
CiteScore
8.60
自引率
2.40%
发文量
113
审稿时长
46 days
期刊介绍: The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology is devoted to new experimental and theoretical developments in areas related to steroids including vitamin D, lipids and their metabolomics. The Journal publishes a variety of contributions, including original articles, general and focused reviews, and rapid communications (brief articles of particular interest and clear novelty). Selected cutting-edge topics will be addressed in Special Issues managed by Guest Editors. Special Issues will contain both commissioned reviews and original research papers to provide comprehensive coverage of specific topics, and all submissions will undergo rigorous peer-review prior to publication.
×
引用
GB/T 7714-2015
复制
MLA
复制
APA
复制
导出至
BibTeX EndNote RefMan NoteFirst NoteExpress
×
提示
您的信息不完整,为了账户安全,请先补充。
现在去补充
×
提示
您因"违规操作"
具体请查看互助需知
我知道了
×
提示
确定
请完成安全验证×
copy
已复制链接
快去分享给好友吧!
我知道了
右上角分享
点击右上角分享
0
联系我们:info@booksci.cn Book学术提供免费学术资源搜索服务,方便国内外学者检索中英文文献。致力于提供最便捷和优质的服务体验。 Copyright © 2023 布克学术 All rights reserved.
京ICP备2023020795号-1
ghs 京公网安备 11010802042870号
Book学术文献互助
Book学术文献互助群
群 号:481959085
Book学术官方微信