Moderate Sun Exposure Is the Complementor in Insufficient Vitamin D Consumers

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Vitamin (Vit) D plays a vital role in human health, and the prevalence of Vit D deficiency worldwide has been a rising concern. This study investigates the serum 25-hydroxy-Vit D [25(OH)D] status in healthy US civilians and identifies how the two main sources, sun exposure and dietary Vit D intake, determine the final 25(OH)D levels in individuals. METHODS: A total of 2,360 of participants from The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2009–2014 were analyzed. We divided the levels of sun exposure and dietary Vit D intake of all subjects into 10 strata and gave a score ranging from 1 to 10 points, respectively. Scores 1–5 in sun exposure and dietary intake were considered as relatively low exposure groups, whereas scores 6–10 were considered as relatively high exposure groups. Serum Vit D inadequacy was defined as <50 nmol/L. Linear and logistic regression analyses were used to examine the associations between sources of Vit D and serum 25(OH)D levels. RESULTS: In relatively low Vit D intake groups (Vit D intake score 1–5), relatively high sun exposure (sun exposure score >5) resulted in higher serum 25(OH)D levels (average 57 nmol/L) compared with relatively low sun exposure (sun exposure score <5) (average 50 nmol/L), whereas this difference became negligible in high intake groups (Vit D intake score 6–10). Moreover, the greatest slope occurred in the low Vit D intake curve (decile 3 of Vit D intake), which shows increased sun exposure time causing the greatest degree of change in serum 25(OH)D level in this group. CONCLUSION: Sun exposure can significantly make up for deficiencies in subjects who consume insufficient dietary Vit D. Compared with the extra cost and time for building habits of Vit D supplementation, moderate sun exposure appears to be a simple and costless means for the public to start in daily practice.