Abstract
Despite the abundant sunlight, vitamin D deficiency is prevalent in South Asian countries including Bangladesh. Information on vitamin D level is insufficient in adults particularly in female garment workers in Bangladesh. This study was designed to evaluate the status of vitamin D, parathormone (PTH), calcium, and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) among the female garment workers in Bangladesh. Blood samples were collected from female garment workers (n = 40, case group) and general female workers (n = 40, control group) in Dhaka. Serum vitamin D, PTH, calcium, and ALP were measured by chemiluminescence microparticle immunoassay. The mean level of vitamin D was significantly (p < 0.001) lower in case (14.2 ± 2.6 ng/mL) than in the control (22.4 ± 2.4 ng/mL) group. No significant difference was found at mean of PTH and calcium between case (33.9 ± 17.2 pg/mL; 9.1 ± 0.6 mg/dL, resp.) and control (35.9 ± 16.3 pg/mL; 9.3 ± 0.6 mg/dL, resp.) group. The mean ALP in case (117.2 ± 14.4 U/L) group was significantly (p < 0.001) higher than the control group (80.5 ± 30.6 U/L). Overall, PTH level did not show significant correlation with vitamin D. However, calcium and ALP levels showed a significant positive (p < 0.05) and negative (p < 0.001) correlation with vitamin D, respectively. This study indicates a high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in the female garment workers in Bangladesh.
Highlights
Vitamin D is a fat soluble steroid hormone which plays an important role in maintaining normal level of calcium and phosphorus in blood
There was no significant difference for age, body mass index (BMI), and waist circumference (WC) between the groups which reflected the homogeneity of the groups
The present study results indicate a high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in female garment workers (100%) and low prevalence in female general workers (17%) in Bangladesh (Table 2)
Summary
Vitamin D is a fat soluble steroid hormone which plays an important role in maintaining normal level of calcium and phosphorus in blood. It promotes bone mineralization and is considered as an important determinant of bone health status through absorption of calcium and the secretion of parathyroid hormone (PTH) [1,2,3]. Natural sunlight exposure is the major source of vitamin D for children and adults [4]. Individuals who work indoors or at day with insufficient sunlight exposure may develop vitamin D deficiency. Socioeconomic factors like homebound lifestyle and clothing can affect the sun exposure to individuals [7, 8]
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