title: Assessing the vitamin D status of the US population.
abstract: This article describes the information currently available in the National Nutrition Monitoring System that is relevant to assessing the vitamin D status of US population groups, the strengths and limitations of this information, and selected results of vitamin D nutritional status assessments. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) provides information on vitamin D intakes only from 1988 to 1994. NHANES collected information on supplement use and circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] concentrations from 1988 through current surveys. The National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference started providing limited data on the vitamin D content of foods in 2002 and continues to update these values. The Food Label and Package Survey provides 2006-2007 label information on vitamin D fortification of marketed foods. Despite limitations in the available data and controversies about appropriate criteria for evaluating vitamin D status among population groups, we can make some useful comparisons of vitamin D status among life-stage groups. In general, males have higher vitamin D intakes and 25(OH)D concentrations than do females. Children tend to have higher vitamin D status than adults. The increasing use of multivitamin-mineral dietary supplements in younger to older adults is not associated with a corresponding increase in serum 25(OH)D concentrations. In general, leaner individuals have higher circulating concentrations of 25(OH)D and supplement use than do heavier individuals. Finally, non-Hispanic whites tend to have higher vitamin D status than do non-Hispanic blacks and Mexican Americans.
authors.affiliation: Office of Dietary Supplements, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA. beth@yetley.com
authors.forename: Elizabeth A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Yetley
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D005515:Food Labeling / Q000592:standards; D005527:Food, Fortified; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015596:Nutrition Assessment; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D009751:Nutritional Requirements; D009752:Nutritional Status; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000097:blood*; D014808:Vitamin D Deficiency / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*
chemical_list: D014807:Vitamin D; C104450:25-hydroxyvitamin D