Associations of vitamin D status with dietary intakes and physical activity levels among adults from seven European countries: the Food4Me study

Yannis Manios*, George Moschonis, Christina P Lambrinou, Christina Mavrogianni, Lydia Tsirigoti, Ulrich Hoeller, Franz F Roos, Igor Bendik, Manfred Eggersdorfer, Carlos Celis-Morales, Katherine M Livingstone, Cyril F M Marsaux, Anna L Macready, Rosalind Fallaize, Clare B O'Donovan, Clara Woolhead, Hannah Forster, Marianne C Walsh, Santiago Navas-Carretero, Rodrigo San-CristobalSilvia Kolossa, Jacqueline Hallmann, Mirosław Jarosz, Agnieszka Surwiłło, Iwona Traczyk, Christian A Drevon, Ben van Ommen, Keith Grimaldi, John N S Matthews, Hannelore Daniel, J Alfredo Martinez, Julie A Lovegrove, Eileen R Gibney, Lorraine Brennan, Wim H M Saris, Mike Gibney, John C Mathers, Food4Me Study

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

PURPOSE: To report the vitamin D status in adults from seven European countries and to identify behavioural correlates.

METHODS: In total, 1075 eligible adult men and women from Ireland, Netherlands, Spain, Greece, UK, Poland and Germany, were included in the study.

RESULTS: Vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency, defined as 25-hydroxy vitamin D3 (25-OHD3) concentration of <30 and 30-49.9 nmol/L, respectively, were observed in 3.3 and 30.6% of the participants. The highest prevalence of vitamin D deficiency was found in the UK and the lowest in the Netherlands (8.2 vs. 1.1%, P < 0.05). In addition, the prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency was higher in females compared with males (36.6 vs. 22.6%, P < 0.001), in winter compared with summer months (39.3 vs. 25.0%, P < 0.05) and in younger compared with older participants (36.0 vs. 24.4%, P < 0.05). Positive dose-response associations were also observed between 25-OHD3 concentrations and dietary vitamin D intake from foods and supplements, as well as with physical activity (PA) levels. Vitamin D intakes of ≥5 μg/day from foods and ≥5 μg/day from supplements, as well as engagement in ≥30 min/day of moderate- and vigorous-intensity PA were associated with higher odds (P < 0.05) for maintaining sufficient (≥50 nmol/L) 25-OHD3 concentrations.

CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency varied considerably among European adults. Dietary intakes of ≥10 μg/day of vitamin D from foods and/or supplements and at least 30 min/day of moderate- and vigorous-intensity PA were the minimum thresholds associated with vitamin D sufficiency.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1357-1368
Number of pages12
JournalEuropean Journal of Nutrition
Volume57
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jun 2018

Keywords

  • Journal Article
  • Physical activity
  • PERSONALIZED NUTRITION
  • PUBLIC-HEALTH
  • D DEFICIENCY
  • HYPOVITAMINOSIS-D
  • Adults Europe
  • RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED-TRIAL
  • Supplements
  • Vitamin D
  • Diet
  • LIFE-STYLE
  • SUNLIGHT EXPOSURE
  • LIVING ENERGY-EXPENDITURE
  • HUMAN-SKIN
  • 25-HYDROXYVITAMIN D CONCENTRATION
  • 25-Hydroxyvitamin D
  • Greece/epidemiology
  • Age Factors
  • Humans
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Young Adult
  • Poland/epidemiology
  • Adult
  • Female
  • Netherlands/epidemiology
  • Ireland/epidemiology
  • Europe
  • Germany/epidemiology
  • Exercise/physiology
  • Vitamin D/administration & dosage
  • United Kingdom/epidemiology
  • Vitamin D Deficiency/blood
  • Adolescent
  • Sex Factors
  • Spain/epidemiology

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