Hypovitaminosis D in Adults with Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Potential Role of Ethnicity.

Dig Dis Sci. 2012 Mar 27.
Fu YT, Chatur N, Cheong-Lee C, Salh B.
Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine, Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre, University of British Columbia, 5th Floor, 2775 Laurel St, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 1M9, Canada, nfu at interchange.ubc.ca.

BACKGROUND: Although vitamin D deficiency occurs in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), it is currently unclear to what extent ethnicity affects vitamin D levels. Our aim was therefore to determine the ethnic variation in serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D status and its association with disease severity in adults with IBD.

METHODS: We conducted a prospective cohort study in ambulatory care IBD patients. Clinical disease severity was assessed through validated questionnaires. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels were used for vitamin D status. C-reactive protein (CRP), ferritin and hemoglobin (Hgb) levels were correlated with serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels.

RESULTS: Sixty ulcerative colitis (UC) and forty Crohn's disease (CD) patients were enrolled comprising 65 % Caucasians and 29 % South Asians. However, South Asians had consistently lower average serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels (All 44.8 ± 18.1 nmol/L, UC 48.2 ± 18.3 nmol/L, CD 24.3 ± 13.3 nmol/L). Hypovitaminosis D was found in 39 % of All, 36.7 % of UC and 42.5 % of CD patients. A significantly higher proportion of South Asians were vitamin D deficient when compared to Caucasians in All and CD groups (58.6 % vs. 30.8 %, p = 0.01 and 85.7 % vs. 32.3 %, p < 0.01, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS: A significantly higher percentage of South Asians had hypovitaminosis D when compared to Caucasians. Disease severity trended towards an inverse relationship with vitamin D status in all South Asian and Caucasian CD patients, although most patients in this study had only mild to moderate disease. We suggest that vitamin D supplementation should be considered in all adult IBD patients.

PMID: 22451117
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Summary
CD and Vitamin D Deficient: Caucasian 32%, South Asian 86%

See also Vitamin D Life

• All items in Gut and Vitamin D 12 items as of March 2012
• More gut problems with a dark skinned people – March 2012
• Overview Deficiency of vitamin D portion of chart from that page:

Some gut problems have vicious circles with vitamin D
Low Vitamin D ==> gut problem ==> lower vitamin D