title: Deficiencies Under Plenty of Sun: Vitamin D Status among Adults in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 2013.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Vitamin D deficiency has been correlated with several diseases and injuries including diabetes, osteoporosis, fractures, and falls. In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), current data on vitamin D status are lacking.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To inform Saudi public health authorities on the current status of blood levels vitamin D deficiency, we analyzed data from the Saudi Health Interview Survey.
  
  
  METHODS
  The Saudi Health Interview Survey (SHIS) is a cross-sectional national multistage survey of individuals aged 15 years and above on sociodemographic characteristics, tobacco consumption, diet, physical activity, health care utilization, different health-related behaviors, and self-reported chronic conditions. A total of 10,735 participants completed a health questionnaire and were invited to the local health clinics for biomedical exams.
  
  
  RESULTS
  62.65% of female Saudis and 40.6% of male Saudis aged 15 years and above are deficient in vitamin D. Out of them, less than 1% males and less than 2% females consume vitamin D supplements. Women who have never married and obese individuals are more likely to be deficient in vitamin D, compared to men who were currently married and nonobese individuals. Those consuming vitamin D supplements are less likely to be deficient in vitamin D.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study showed a high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among Saudi men and women, and the results call for an increased awareness to ensure adequate levels of vitamin D for better health in Saudi Arabia. Moreover, our findings are certainly relevant for other countries in the Gulf region or countries with similar cultures, clothing, and religions.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
authors.forename: Marwa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tuffaha
authors.affiliation: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
authors.forename: Charbel
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: El Bcheraoui
authors.affiliation: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
authors.forename: Farah
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Daoud
authors.affiliation: Ministry of Health of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Hessah Abdulla
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Al Hussaini
authors.affiliation: Ministry of Health of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Fahad
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Alamri
authors.affiliation: Ministry of Health of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Mohammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Al Saeedi
authors.affiliation: Ministry of Health of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Mohammed
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Basulaiman
authors.affiliation: Ministry of Health of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Ziad A
authors.initials: ZA
authors.lastname: Memish
authors.affiliation: Ministry of Health of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Mohammad A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: AlMazroa
authors.affiliation: Ministry of Health of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Abdullah A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Al Rabeeah
authors.affiliation: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
authors.forename: Ali H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Mokdad
keywords: Deficiency; Saudi Arabia; supplements; vitamin D