The correlation of obesity status with serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D in US Asian adults: NHANES 2011-2018

PLoS One. 2024 Apr 16;19(4):e0301327. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0301327. eCollection 2024.

Abstract

Background: There is a correlation between obesity and 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) that tends to be negative. However, this relationship varies among different races. In this study, Asian adults with and without obesity were compared in terms of their levels of 25OHD.

Methods: We carried out a cross-sectional analysis on 2664 non-Hispanic Asian adults who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) conducted between 2011 and 2018. To examine the connection between obese status, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC) and weight, and 25OHD, we ran multivariate linear regression models and multivariate logistic regression models.

Results: After adjusting for all confounding factors, obesity status shows a significant positive correlation with vitamin D deficiency (model 3: OR = 2.318, 95% CI:1.317, 4.082). This positive correlation remains significant in males (males: OR = 2.713, 95% CI: -13.398, 5.217). In all three models, a negative association was observed between obesity status and 25OHD (model 1: β = -4.535, 95% CI: -6.987, -2.083; model 2 β = -4.249, 95% CI: -6.549, -2.039; model 3 β = -1.734, 95% CI: -7.285, 3.816). After controlling for covariates, there was a significant negative correlation between WC and 25OHD when stratified by gender and obesity status in both males with and without obesity (males with obesity: β = -1.461, 95% CI: -2.485, -0.436; males without obesity: β = -0.855. 95% CI: -1.499, -0.210). In males with obesity, there was a very strong positive connection between body weight and 25OHD (β = 0.912, 95% CI: 0.227, 1.597). In addition, neither gender's obese individuals showed a significant link between BMI and 25OHD.

Conclusion: This study demonstrated a positive correlation between obesity and vitamin D deficiency and a negative correlation between obesity and 25OHD in Asian American adults. Additionally, among male obese individuals, there was a significant negative correlation between WC and 25OHD, an observation that needs to be validated in further prospective studies.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Asian*
  • Body Mass Index
  • Calcifediol
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Nutrition Surveys
  • Obesity* / epidemiology
  • Prospective Studies
  • United States
  • Vitamin D Deficiency* / complications
  • Vitamin D Deficiency* / epidemiology
  • Vitamin D* / analogs & derivatives
  • Vitamin D* / blood

Substances

  • 25-hydroxyvitamin D
  • Calcifediol
  • Vitamin D

Grants and funding

Scientific and technological innovation project of China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences (C12021A03005). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.