Prevalence of hypovitaminosis D in the adult population of the Republic of Belarus

Abstract

Hypovitaminosis D in both adults and children is detected with high frequency in various geographic zones of our planet. At the same time, vitamin D has a number of positive effects on human health and is an important micronutrient for prevention of some diseases. The purpose of this study is to identify the incidence of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency in the adult population of the Republic of Belarus. We analyzed the laboratory results on total vitamin D that was produced in 2019 and 2020 in persons over 18 years old living in the Republic of Belarus. The vitamin D status was assessed according to international guidelines. The average level of vitamin D in the surveyed population during the study period did not reach normal values in all age groups in both men and women. The highest frequency of hypovitaminosis D was observed in the autumn-winter period and reached 81.6 % in January 2019 and 77.8 % in January 2020. In the summer months, normal levels of vitamin D were observed in less than 50 % of those surveyed: the maximum values were 40.7 % in July 2019 and 45.8 % in July 2020. Due to the high prevalence of hypovitaminosis D, it is advisable to carry out measures for prevention and treatment of DVD in the residents of the Republic of Belarus at the population level.