title: Sun exposure, skin color and vitamin D status in Arab children and adults.
abstract: Accumulating evidence suggests an increased prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in the Middle East and North African countries. Sunlight has long been recognized as a major provider of vitamin D and lighter skin color has been associated with better vitamin D status. In this context, we aimed to determine whether 25-hydroxyvitamin D[25-(OH)D] concentrations are related to skin color, sun exposure and gender among healthy Saudi children and adults. A total of 808 Saudi children (age=14.6±0.04years) and 561 (age=31.4±0.3years) adults of both genders were included in this study. Levels of sun exposure and skin color were determined using a standard questionnaire. Anthropometry and plasma 25-(OH)D concentrations were analyzed. On the basis of duration of sun exposure (<20min vs. >20min), a significantly lower concentration of 25-(OH)D (40.9±1.2 vs. 35.5±1.8nmol/l; p<0.019) was demonstrated in dark-skinned boys with exposure time less than 20min than those exposed longer than 20min. We were unable to show an effect of sunlight exposure or skin color on vitamin D status of children or adults, except in dark-skinned boys who had lower 25(OH)D concentrations associated with limited sun exposure.
authors.affiliation: Prince Mutaib Chair for Biomarkers of Osteoporosis, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia; Biomarkers Research Program, Biochemistry Department, College of Science, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia. Electronic address: aldaghri2011@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Nasser M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Al-Daghri
authors.affiliation: Prince Mutaib Chair for Biomarkers of Osteoporosis, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia; King Abdulaziz Medical City, College of Medicine, King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh 11426, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Yousef
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Al-Saleh
authors.affiliation: Prince Mutaib Chair for Biomarkers of Osteoporosis, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia; Biomarkers Research Program, Biochemistry Department, College of Science, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Nasiruddin
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.affiliation: Prince Mutaib Chair for Biomarkers of Osteoporosis, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia; Biomarkers Research Program, Biochemistry Department, College of Science, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Shaun
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sabico
authors.affiliation: Specialized Diabetes and Endocrine Center, King Fahad Medical City, Faculty of Medicine, King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Science (KSAU-HS), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Naji
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Aljohani
authors.affiliation: Prince Mutaib Chair for Biomarkers of Osteoporosis, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia; College of Food Science & Agriculture, Dept. of Food Science & Nutrition, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Hanan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Alfawaz
authors.affiliation: Biochemistry Department, College of Science, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Maha
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Alsulaimani
authors.affiliation: Prince Mutaib Chair for Biomarkers of Osteoporosis, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia; College of Applied Medical Sciences, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Abdulaziz M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Al-Othman
authors.affiliation: Prince Mutaib Chair for Biomarkers of Osteoporosis, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia; Biomarkers Research Program, Biochemistry Department, College of Science, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Majed S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Alokail
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D018912:Arabs; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012529:Saudi Arabia / Q000453:epidemiology; D012880:Skin Pigmentation; D013472:Sunlight; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000097:blood; D014808:Vitamin D Deficiency / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D014807:Vitamin D; C104450:25-hydroxyvitamin D
keywords: Gender; Saudi Arabia; Skin color; Sun exposure; Vitamin D