New research carried out by Trinity researchers has discovered that vitamin D deficiency is concentrated in disadvantaged areas of Dublin, with some areas displaying deficiency levels of over five times the average for people in the city.
Researchers used a combination of new geo-mapping techniques and more traditional research methods to compile a detailed picture of vitamin D status among the inhabitants of various Dublin regions. Data from 5,200 individuals was used in creating the map, the first of its kind in Ireland, which was released to coincide with International vitamin D awareness day today.
In a press release, author of the study and Research Fellow at the Centre for Medical Gerontology in Trinity, which studies old age and the problems old people face, Dr Eamon Laird, expressed his hope that the mapping would “provide useful data to help inform public health policy regarding endemic vitamin D insufficiency to help target the population groups and resident location areas most at risk”.
According to the study, one in eight people living in Dublin are vitamin D deficient. This peaks in winter, when 15.2 per cent of the population showed deficiency, compared to 10.8 per cent in the summer months. These rates roughly coincide with similar studies done in large urban centres across Europe.
Levels of deficiency are concentrated in the most socially and economically deprived areas, and those with greatest ethnic diversity – Lucan and Dublin 8 postal districts – where one in four people on average vitamin D deficient. This was double the rate for the city as a whole, and up to five times higher than that of other more affluent areas where deficiency was lower on average. For example Dublin 16, home to Dun-Laoghaire, Rathdown and South Dublin constituencies, posted rates of deficiency at about five per cent in summer, while in Kildare the level of 7.6 per cent even in winter was well below national average.
It’s examples like this that really stamp home the reasons for vitamins to be obtainable through tablet form – people cannot always get these vitamins and minerals naturally, so the fact that science can step in and give them to us in an easier way – in the form of Vitamin D Supplements From Vitabiotics and other companies – needs to be welcomed with open arms. The stubbornness of young adults may see them saying no to vitamin tablets (because let’s face it, they think they know better) but in the long run it’s the right thing to do.
The study also found that women had on average 25 per cent higher concentration of vitamin D than did men. Those aged between 18 and 50 posted higher rates of deficiency than older people too, with their concentration of the vitamin being 27 per cent lower than over 50s in winter and 20.7 per cent lower in summer. This contradicts a common view that older people have greater issues with vitamin D than young people and adults.
The main source of vitamin D for humans is ultraviolet radiation from sunlight. The vitamin is essential for the absorption of calcium, and can also be found in liver and fish oils.
Vitamin D has long been linked to musculoskeletal and bone health conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, and more historically, rickets in children. More recently, however, doctors believe that vitamin D deficiency is a risk factor in a large body of serious health conditions including heart disease, type two diabetes, cancer and inflammatory conditions.
The advantage of this kind visual geo-mapping is its ability to provide rapid information that picks up on trends that might be missed in a larger survey. Moreover, researchers commented on the “unique economic, social and climatic micro environments” that urban environments represent compared to other parts of the country. Looking into city-wide vitamin D status provides researchers with a valuable insight into the effect that the demands of urban residence can have on vitamin D concentration.
Laird further explained the findings of the study with reference to the differences in diet and practice that arise between different class groups and ethnicities. For example oily fish and other fortified foods that are rich in vitamin D tend to be more expensive. More ethnically diverse locations also showed lower vitamin D concentrations, possibly as a result of increased skin-pigmentation, in addition to what Laird describes as “ethnic lifestyle choices such as traditional clothing and/or dietary habits” that can increase risk of low vitamin D levels.
