Vitamin D status among the elderly Chinese population: a cross-sectional analysis of the 2010–2013 China national nutrition and health survey (CNNHS)

BACKGROUND: Vitamin D inadequacy is common among the elderly, especially within the Asian population. The vitamin D status among healthy adults in the elderly Chinese population was evaluated. METHODS: A total of 6014 healthy adults aged 60 years or older (2948 men, 3066 women) participated in this descriptive cross-sectional analysis. Possible predictors of vitamin D inadequacy were evaluated via multiple logistic regression analyses. RESULTS: The median serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) levels were 61.0 nmol/l (interquartile range (IQR) 44.3–80.6, range 5.1–154.5) for men and 53.7 nmol/l (IQR 38.8–71.0, range 6.0–190.0) for women, with 34.1% (95% confidence interval (CI) 32.4–35.8) of men and 44.0% (95% CI 42.2–45.8) of women presenting vitamin D inadequacy (25(OH)D <50 nmol/l). According to the multivariate logistic regression analyses, vitamin D inadequacy was positively correlated with female gender (P <0.0001), underweight (P = 0.0259), the spring season (P <0.0001), low ambient UVB levels (P <0.0001) and living in large cities (P = 0.0026). For men, vitamin D inadequacy was positively correlated with the spring season (P = 0.0015), low ambient UVB levels (P <0.0001) and living in large cities (P = 0.0022); for women, vitamin D inadequacy was positively correlated with the spring season (P = 0.0005) and low ambient UVB levels (P <.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Vitamin D inadequacy is prevalent among the elderly population in China. Because residing in regions with low ambient UVB levels increases the risk of vitamin D inadequacy both for men and women, vitamin D supplementation and sensible sun exposure should be encouraged, especially during the cooler seasons. Further studies are required to determine the optimal vitamin D intake and sun exposure levels to maintain sufficient vitamin D levels in the elderly Chinese population.