title: Vitamin D levels in men in a single primary care practice near Boston.
abstract: Vitamin D levels in the general population have been studied in the past; however, these studies have not directed particular attention to men, nor have they studied patients across all age groups. The present retrospective report documents the vitamin D levels of all the male patients in a single primary care practice near Boston who scheduled their own physical examinations over a 1-year period. Six hundred seventy-five men had their vitamin D levels assessed, and 228 (34%) had levels below 20 ng/ml and 90 of these men (16%) had levels below 15 ng/ml. The widely accepted lower limit for normal vitamin D levels is 20 ng/ml, although specialists advise goal levels of at least 30 ng/ml. Of the 675 men studied, 83% had levels below 30 ng/ml. Men reported to have serum levels of vitamin D below 20 ng/ml included those taking multivitamins daily. Subgroups of Indian-born and Chinese-born patients, most of whom are software engineers working around Boston, were almost universally identified to have low levels of vitamin D.
authors.affiliation: Lahey Clinic, Burlington, MA 01805, USA. perry.r.karfunkel@lahey.org
authors.forename: Perry
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Karfunkel
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002681:China / Q000208:ethnology; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000208:ethnology; D008297:Male; D008404:Massachusetts / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D011320:Primary Health Care; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000097:blood*; D014808:Vitamin D Deficiency / Q000453:epidemiology*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D014807:Vitamin D