title: Prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in uninsured women.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Vitamin D deficiency, an important risk factor for osteoporosis and other chronic medical conditions, is epidemic in the United States. Uninsured women may be at an even higher risk for vitamin D deficiency than others owing to low intake of dietary and supplemental vitamin D and limited sun exposure.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Our goal was to determine the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in this vulnerable population.
  
  
  METHODS
  We enrolled 145 uninsured women at a County Free Medical Clinic in urban Michigan. Questionnaires were used to obtain information about demographics, medical history, vitamin supplementation, sunlight exposure, and dietary vitamin D intake.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The 96 women who were tested for vitamin D status ranged in age from 21 to 65 years (mean 48 +/- 11), and 67% were vitamin D deficient as indicated by a 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D)] level <50 nmol/L (20 ng/mL). Non-Caucasians were 3 times more likely than Caucasians to be vitamin D deficient (P = .049). Mean dietary vitamin D intake was low (125 +/- 109 IU/d) and only 24% of the participants used any supplemental vitamin D. Participants with total vitamin D intake <400 IU/day from diet and supplements were 10 times more likely to be vitamin D deficient than others (P < .001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results demonstrate a high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in an uninsured, medically underserved female population. Uninsured women should be strongly encouraged to increase their vitamin D intake.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, McLaren Regional Medical Center, Michigan State University, Flint, Michigan 48532-3685, USA. radhikak@mclaren.org
authors.forename: Radhika R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Kakarala
authors.forename: Sreenivasa R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Chandana
authors.forename: Susan S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Harris
authors.forename: Lakshmi P
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: Kocharla
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dvorin
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D015992:Body Mass Index; D004032:Diet; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017057:Medically Uninsured; D008824:Michigan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D044469:Racial Groups; D012307:Risk Factors; D012621:Seasons; D013472:Sunlight; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000097:blood; D014808:Vitamin D Deficiency / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*
chemical_list: D014807:Vitamin D; C104450:25-hydroxyvitamin D