Association of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration with anthropometric measures in children and adolescents: the CASPIAN-V study

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) concentrations reflect vitamin D status, with deficiency implicated as an underlying factor for many adverse health effects. This study aims to analyze the association between vitamin D status and different anthropometric measures in a large pediatric population. METHODS: This nationwide cross-sectional study was conducted in 2019 in blood samples obtained from school students of 30 provinces in Iran. Participants were 2596 children and adolescents aged 7-18 years. Weight, height, waist circumference (WC), hip circumference (HC), neck circumference (NC), and wrist circumference (WrC) were measured. Body mass index (BMI) and waist-to-height ratio (W/HtR) were calculated. Serum 25(OH)D concentrations were measured using chemiluminescent immunoassay. RESULTS: Participants consisted of 55 boys, 71.3 urban inhabitants, with a mean (SD) age of 12.1 (3.0) years. Overall, vitamin D deficiency was documented in 10.6 of participants, insufficiency in 60.4, and sufficiency in 29 of the population studied. The mean of BMI and WC was higher in the vitamin D deficient than in the vitamin D sufficient group (19.31 kg/m(2) and 69.24 cm vs. 18.34 kg/m(2) and 65.73 cm, respectively, P < 0.01). Multivariate linear regression models revealed a significant association of vitamin D insufficiency with WC and W/HtR (P < 0.05). Likewise, in the multivariate regression models, vitamin D deficiency was associated with BMI, WC, and W/HtR (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Our findings on the inverse association between vitamin D status and some anthropometric measures underscore the importance of providing vitamin D by fortification and supplementation programs of vitamin D for the pediatric population. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: V.