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. 2023 Jun 15;11(9):5492-5500.
doi: 10.1002/fsn3.3505. eCollection 2023 Sep.

Sex differences in vitamin D and behavioral profiles among children with allergic diseases

Chia-Jung Li  1 , Ling-Sai Chang  2 , Mindy Ming-Huey Guo  2 , Liang-Jen Wang  1 , Ho-Chang Kuo  2   3
Affiliations

Sex differences in vitamin D and behavioral profiles among children with allergic diseases

Chia-Jung Li et al. Food Sci Nutr. .

Abstract

Previous studies have suggested that vitamin D has a protective effect on allergic diseases, while an individual's sex may have a moderating effect on the relationship between vitamin D and allergic-related immunity. This study aimed to determine the role of vitamin D in children with coexisting allergic diseases in the context of sex differences and to explore the behavioral profiles of these patients. We recruited a total of 103 children with atopic diseases and divided them into four groups: males with one allergic disease (MA1, n = 20), males with two or more allergic diseases (MA2, n = 26), females with one allergic disease (FA1, n = 30), and females with two or more allergic diseases (FA2, n = 27). We measured serum calcium levels using the colorimetric method and serum 25-OH vitamin D total levels using electrochemiluminescence immunoassay. We found that MA2 had significantly lower vitamin D levels than MA1 and FA2. The levels of IgE were negatively correlated with vitamin D in females, whereas the levels of IgE were not significantly correlated with vitamin D in males. Furthermore, serum IgE was significantly correlated with children's adaptive skills, and different sexes were associated with different aspects of adaptive skills. Our findings suggest a protective role of vitamin D in the development of one allergic disease against the coexistence of allergic diseases in males, as well as extend the evidence for sex differences in immunity by demonstrating a sex-different correlation between IgE and vitamin D and the relationship between IgE and children's adaptive skills.

Keywords: IgE; allergic rhinitis; asthma; atopic dermatitis; vitamin D.

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Conflict of interest statement

All authors declare no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Plasma levels of IgE (a), ECP (b), Calcium (c) and Vit D (d) among four groups children (males with one allergic disease [MA1], males with two or more allergic diseases [MA2], females with one allergic disease [FA1], and females with two or more allergic diseases [FA2]. *p < .05, **p < .01.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
The relationships between IgE and Vit. D in males (a) and females (b), respectively. The levels of IgE were not significantly correlated to Vit. D in males (r = .055, p = .728), and the levels of IgE were negatively correlated to Vit. D in females (r = −0309, p = .022).
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