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. 2019 Mar 22;19(1):337.
doi: 10.1186/s12889-019-6657-9.

Vitamin D deficiency in northern Taiwan: a community-based cohort study

Ming-Jse Lee  1 , Heng-Jung Hsu  1   2   3 , I-Wen Wu  1   2 , Chiao-Yin Sun  1   2 , Ming-Kuo Ting  4 , Chin-Chan Lee  5   6
Affiliations

Vitamin D deficiency in northern Taiwan: a community-based cohort study

Ming-Jse Lee et al. BMC Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: Vitamin D deficiency has become an important public health problem, however few studies have been conducted in subtropical countries, and the predictors of vitamin D deficiency in people with healthy renal function are unclear. The objective of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and factors associated with vitamin D deficiency in northern Taiwan.

Methods: The cross-sectional study was performed between August 2013 and August 2017, and included 3954 participants without chronic kidney disease (CKD) aged ≥30 years in northern Taiwan. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)-D] levels, biochemistry, sociodemographic variables (age, sex, education, occupation) and lifestyle habits (tea, coffee consumption and physical activities) were recorded. Associations between vitamin D status and these variables were examined using a regression model. The definition of deficiency was defined as a serum 25(OH)-D level < 20 ng/mL (50 nmol/L).

Results: The mean 25(OH)-D concentration was 28.9 ng/mL, and 22.4% of the study population had vitamin D deficiency. There was a significantly higher vitamin D deficiency ratio in the women compared to the men (22.9% vs 9.9%, p < 0.001). Vitamin D deficiency was most prevalent (38.4%) in those aged 30-39 years. Those with a graduate degree had the highest rate of vitamin D deficiency (31.5%). The predictors of vitamin D deficiency included female sex, young age, high education level, living in an urban area and physical inactivity. Tea consumption was negatively associated with vitamin D deficiency.

Conclusions: Vitamin D deficiency is prevalent in subtropical areas such as northern Taiwan in healthy individuals without CKD.

Keywords: Prevalence; Risk factor; Taiwan; Vitamin D deficiency.

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Conflict of interest statement

Ethics approval and consent to participate

This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital (IRB No:100-2248A3). All participants agreed to the study conditions and provided written informed consent before the enrollment in this study.

Consent for publication

Not applicable

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
The prevalence of 25(OH) vitamin D deficiency in the study population in different age groups by multivariate analysis (*P < 0.05)
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
The prevalence of 25(OH) vitamin D deficiency in the study population in different education levels by multivariate analysis (*P < 0.05)
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
The prevalence of 25(OH) vitamin D deficiency in the study population in different occupations by multivariate analysis. Occupation classification: (a) (Agriculture); (b) (Fishery); (c) (Manufacturing Industry); (d) (Government employee); (e) (Homemaker); (f) (Service industry) (*P < 0.05)
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
The prevalence of 25(OH) vitamin D deficiency in the study population in different residential districts by multivariate analysis (*P < 0.05)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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