TY - JOUR
T1 - Seasonal 25-hydroxyvitamin D changes in British postmenopausal women at 57°N and 51°N
T2 - a longitudinal study
AU - Mavroeidi, A.
AU - O'Neill, F.
AU - Lee, P. A.
AU - Darling, A. L.
AU - Fraser, W. D.
AU - Berry, J. L.
AU - Lee, W. T.
AU - Reid, D. M.
AU - Lanham-New, S. A.
AU - Macdonald, H. M.
PY - 2010/7/1
Y1 - 2010/7/1
N2 - The UK has insufficient intensity of sunlight at wavelengths 290-315. nm to enable cutaneous synthesis of vitamin D from October to April. There are regional differences in UVB strength throughout the UK but whether this translates to differences in vitamin D status is not known. We have reported seasonal variations in a cross-sectional study of over 3000 Scottish women in Aberdeen. The aim of this longitudinal study was to compare the seasonal variation of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] in postmenopausal women residing in Aberdeen (57°N) and Surrey (51°N). Women attended 3-monthly visits over 12 months, starting summer 2006. In Aberdeen, 338 Caucasian women (mean age ± SD, 61.7 ± 1.5 years); and at Surrey, 138 Caucasian women (61.4 ± 4.5 years) and 35 Asian women (59.9 ± 6.4 years) had serum 25(OH)D measured by IDS enzyme immunoassay. In winter/spring none of the Caucasian women living in Surrey had 25(OH)D < 20 nmol/L, but nearly a quarter of women in Aberdeen were vitamin D-deficient. This number decreased to 4.2% in summer/autumn. For the Asian women 17.1% were vitamin D-deficient in summer, increasing to 58.1% in winter. Using higher 25(OH)D deficiency cut-offs, the percentage of women affected was much higher. These longitudinal data show clear differences in vitamin D status between the north and south of the UK, and marked ethnic differences. They are consistent with our previous data and with cross-sectional data from the 1958 birth cohort. The low vitamin D status may have implications for bone health and other health outcomes, which is currently being investigated in this publication group. The extent of vitamin D deficiency in Asian women residing in the South of England is of concern.
AB - The UK has insufficient intensity of sunlight at wavelengths 290-315. nm to enable cutaneous synthesis of vitamin D from October to April. There are regional differences in UVB strength throughout the UK but whether this translates to differences in vitamin D status is not known. We have reported seasonal variations in a cross-sectional study of over 3000 Scottish women in Aberdeen. The aim of this longitudinal study was to compare the seasonal variation of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] in postmenopausal women residing in Aberdeen (57°N) and Surrey (51°N). Women attended 3-monthly visits over 12 months, starting summer 2006. In Aberdeen, 338 Caucasian women (mean age ± SD, 61.7 ± 1.5 years); and at Surrey, 138 Caucasian women (61.4 ± 4.5 years) and 35 Asian women (59.9 ± 6.4 years) had serum 25(OH)D measured by IDS enzyme immunoassay. In winter/spring none of the Caucasian women living in Surrey had 25(OH)D < 20 nmol/L, but nearly a quarter of women in Aberdeen were vitamin D-deficient. This number decreased to 4.2% in summer/autumn. For the Asian women 17.1% were vitamin D-deficient in summer, increasing to 58.1% in winter. Using higher 25(OH)D deficiency cut-offs, the percentage of women affected was much higher. These longitudinal data show clear differences in vitamin D status between the north and south of the UK, and marked ethnic differences. They are consistent with our previous data and with cross-sectional data from the 1958 birth cohort. The low vitamin D status may have implications for bone health and other health outcomes, which is currently being investigated in this publication group. The extent of vitamin D deficiency in Asian women residing in the South of England is of concern.
KW - asian vs. caucasian postmenopausal women
KW - longitudinal study
KW - regional UK variation
KW - seasonal variation
KW - vitamin D deficiency
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=77954758269&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2010.03.038
DO - 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2010.03.038
M3 - Article
C2 - 20302933
AN - SCOPUS:77954758269
SN - 0960-0760
VL - 121
SP - 459
EP - 461
JO - Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
JF - Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
IS - 1-2
ER -