HEALTH ALERT: ONE-THIRD OF GLOBAL POPULATION VITAMIN D DEFICIENT

ONE-THIRD OF GLOBAL POPULATION VITAMIN D DEFICIENT

Published  Sept,5, 2013 in Food Product Design

Posted in News, Bone Health, Heart Health, Cardiovascular, Daily Value (DV), Diet, Fortification,International, Nutrition, Science & Research, Vitamins / Minerals, Vitamin, Vitamin D, Dairy,Demographic, Children, Diabetes, Cancer, Immunity, Immune Health

NYON, Switzerland—Low levels of vitamin D have a potentially serious impact on health, and a new systematic review published in the British Journal of Nutrition found nearly one-third of the global population is below the suggested daily intake. The review analyzed close to 200 population-based vitamin D studies from 44 countries and revealed the highest vitamin D values were found in North America.

The review is the first to focus on patterns of vitamin D status worldwide and in key population subgroups. To improve comparisons, the study used continuous values for 25(OH)D.

“The strength of our study is that we used strict inclusion criteria to filter and compare data, using consistent values for 25(OH)D," said principal investigator Dr. Kristina Hoffmann of the Mannheim Institute of Public Health (MIPH), Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University. "Although we found a high degree of variability between reports of vitamin D status at the population level, more than one-third of the studies reviewed reported mean serum 25(OH)D values below 50 nmol/l."
The study’s key findings include:

• 37.3% of the studies reviewed reported mean serum 25(OH)D values below 50 nmol/l, values considered inadequate by health authorities worldwide.
• Vitamin D values were higher in North America than in Europe or the Middle East.
• The substantial heterogeneity between the studies within each region precludes drawing conclusions on overall vitamin D status at the population level.

Low levels of vitamin D have a potentially serious impact on health, which could be why consumers areadding more Vitamin D into their diets. Low values are associated with osteomalacia, osteopenia, osteoporosis and risk of fracture. Emerging evidence also points to increased risk for cancer and cardiovascular diseases. In fact, new findings show food fortification using vitamin D may prevent hypertension and other types of cardiovascular disease, and can help reduce the risk of diabetes for obese children.

Sources:

• International Osteoporosis Foundation: More than one-third of populations worldwide may have low levels of vitamin D, study shows

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