Abstract 3736: Correlates of vitamin D: A measurement pilot study

Abstract

Abstract Vitamin D has protective effects for colorectal cancer and possible benefits for breast and ovarian cancers yet the determinants of vitamin D status are not fully understood. This study measured sun exposure, sun protection, diet, body mass index, and skin color and correlated them with serum 25(OH)D to understand better the impact of these factors on vitamin D status. Women (n=28) ages 18-30 residing in Hawaii attended small group sessions where they completed questionnaires about diet, supplement use, and skin type and had skin color measured by reflectance spectrophotometry. Participants wore polysulphone dosimeters mounted on wristbands, photographed clothing outfits and kept daily diaries for the 7 days before their blood draw. Results: Participants were, on average, 24.6 (3.3) years old, had BMI of 23.6 (range 17.7 – 34.7), consumed 308 IU vitamin D daily (range 10 – 1202), used sunscreen on 12% of their body (range 0 to 44%), were 44% covered by clothing (range 22 – 79%), received 2.3 standard erythemal doses (range .1 to 5.9) of UVB and had 34.7 ng/mL of 25(OH)D3 (range 17.7 – 90.5). Personal UVB dose accounted for 22% of the variance in 25(OH)D, and the addition of clothing and sunscreen coverage increased the R2 value to 0.33. Skin color and diet were not associated with 25(OH)D. While BMI was showed an association 25(OH)D, it did not improve the model and was inversely related to UVB exposure. While the measured sun-related variables were useful for predicting 25(OH)D, the majority of variance in vitamin D status is unexplained. More research is needed to understand how this hormone is regulated in the body. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 102nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2011 Apr 2-6; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2011;71(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 3736. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2011-3736