Importance of vitamin D and vitamin D levels status in Puerto Ricans
Author
Suárez- Martínez, Edu B.
Pérez, Cynthia M
Cruz, Sofia K.
Khorsandi, Shayan
Chardón, Camile
Ferder, Leon
Type
ArticleDate
2013-11Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
There is growing and compelling evidence demonstrating the extra-skeletal role of vitamin D and the importance of maintaining adequate levels of this nutrient. Currently, there is very limited information available on the vitamin D status in children and adults in underserved groups, including Puerto Ricans. We assessed the vitamin D status of 4,090 Puerto Ricans living in six geographical regions in the island. Only 31.5% of the studied population had sufficient vitamin D levels (>30 ng/ml). The 18–39 year age group and the females showed inadequate (<30 ng/ml) levels of vitamin D (76.9% and 69.8%, respectively). Participants aged 60 or older showed the highest mean values of serum 25(OH)D (28.8 ng/ ml) and the highest percentage (37.1%) of sufficient levels (>30 ng/ml). Future studies are certainly warranted to understand the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and influencing factors (including obesity) in Puerto Ricans.
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https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4209469/pdf/nihms-590441.pdfhttp://hdl.handle.net/11721/1639