HIGH PREVALENCE OF VITAMIN D DEFICIENCY IN ASYMPTOMATIC RECREATIONAL ATHLETES

Abstract

Vitamin D deficiency is referred to as a global pandemic. Athletes benefit from vitamin D supplementation not only by prevention of a wide range of diseases that are associated with low serum vitamin D concentrations but also by improved performance, better adaptive responses to exercise and reduced risk of bone stress fractures. Research on vitamin D status of elite athletes are present. However, very little is known on vitamin D deficiency prevalence in recreational athletes. In this retrospective study we have analysed the vitamin D concentrations of asymptomatic recreational athletes (n=165) from 12 different sports branches who presented to our clinic in the time course of a year. 11.51% of athletes had insufficient vitamin D concentrations (20-30 ng/mL), whereas 84.24% of athletes were vitamin D deficient (<20 ng/mL). However, vitamin D levels higher than recommended, such as 73.1 ng/dL, were also observed. Medians of vitamin D levels showed significant difference among seasons (p<.01), however indoor/outdoor characteristic of the sport did not have a significant effect (p>.05). Difference between vitamin D levels of men and women were insignificant (p>.05). In conclusion, prevalence of vitamin D deficiency was very high among recreational athletes who presented to our clinic.

Keywords

• Vitamin D,Sports Nutrition,Sports Medicine,Sports Health

References

1. Chung M, Lee J, Terasawa T, Lau J, Trikalinos TA. (2011). Vitamin D with or without calcium supplementation for prevention of cancer and fractures: An updated meta-analysis for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Annals of Internal Medicine. 155(12), 827-838.
2. Close GL, Russell J, Cobley JN, Owens DJ, Wilson G, Gregson W, Fraser WD, Morton JP. (2013). Assessment of vitamin D concentration in non-supplemented professional athletes and healthy adults during the winter months in the UK: implications for skeletal muscle function. Journal of Sports Sciences. 31(4), 344-353.
3. Dahlquist DT, Dieter BP, Koehle MS. (2015). Plausible ergogenic effects of vitamin D on athletic performance and recovery. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. 12, 33.
4. Daugaard S, Garde AH, Hansen ÅM, Vistisen HT, Rejnmark L, Kolstad HA. (2018). Indoor, outdoor, and night work and blood concentrations of vitamin D and parathyroid hormone. Scandinavian Journal of Public Health. 44(6), 647-657.
5. Durup D, Jørgensen HL, Christensen J, Schwarz P, Heegaard AM, Lind B. (2012). A reverse j-shaped association of all-cause mortality with serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D in general practice: The copd study. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. 97(8), 2644-2652.
6. Goswami R, Saha S, Sreenivas V, Singh N, Lakshmy R. (2017). Vitamin D-binding protein, vitamin D status and serum bioavailable 25(OH)D of young Asian Indian males working in outdoor and indoor environments. Journal of Bone and Mineral Metabolism. 35(2), 177-184.
7. Heaney RP. (2008). Vitamin D: Criteria for safety and efficacy. Nutrition Reviews. 66(2),178-181.
8. Holick MF, Binkley NC, Bischoff-Ferrari HA, Gordon CM, Hanley DA, Heaney RP, Murad MH, Weaver CM. (2011). Evaluation, treatment, and prevention of vitamin D deficiency: An endocrine society clinical practice guideline. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. 96(7), 1911-1930.

9. Hossein-nezhad A, Holick MF. (2013). Vitamin D for health: A global perspective. Mayo Clinic Proceedings. 88(7), 720-755.
10. Lappe J, Cullen D, Haynatzki G, Recker R, Ahlf R, Thompson K. (2008). Calcium and vitamin D supplementation decreases incidence of stress fractures in female navy recruits. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research. 23(5), 741-749.
11. Larson-Meyer DE, Woolf K, Burke L. (2018). Assessment of nutrient status in athletes and the need for supplementation. International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism. 28(2), 139-158.
12. Maughan RJ, Burke LM, Dvorak J, Larson-Me yer DE, Peeling P, Phillips SM, Rawson ES, Walsh NP, Garthe I, Geyer H, Meeusen R, van Loon LJC, Shirreffs SM, Spriet LL, Stuart M, Vernec A, Currell K, Ali VM, Budgett RG, Ljungvist A, Mountjoy M, Pitsiladis YP, Soligard T, Erdener U, Engebretsen L. (2018). IOC consensus statement: dietary supplements and the high-performance athlete. British Journal of Sports Medicine. 52(7), 439-455.
13. Mithal A, Bonjour J-P, Boonen S, Burckhardt P, Degens H, El Hajj Fuleihan G, Josse R, Lips P, Morales Torres J, Rizzoli R, Yoshimura N, Wahl DA, Cooper C, Dawson-Hughes B. (2013). Impact of nutrition on muscle mass, strength, and performance in older adults. Osteoporosis International. 24(5), 1555-1566.
14. Ogan D, Pritchett K. (2013). Vitamin D and the athlete: Risks, recommendations, and benefits. Nutrients. 5(6), 1856-1868.
15. Pilz S, Tomaschitz A, März W, Drechsler C, Ritz E, Zittermann A. (2011). Vitamin D, cardiovascular disease and mortality. Clinical Endocrinology 75(5), 575-584.
16. Pludowski P, Holick MF, Pilz S, Wagner CL, Hollis BW, Grant WB, Shoenfeld Y, Lerchbaum E, Llewellyn DJ, Kienreich K, Soni M. (2013). Vitamin D effects on musculoskeletal health, immunity, autoimmunity, cardiovascular disease, cancer, fertility, pregnancy, dementia and mortality—A review of recent evidence. Autoimmunity Reviews. 12(10), 976-989.
17. Ruohola J-P, Laaksi I, Ylikomi T, Haataja R, Mattila VM, Sahi T, Tuohimaa P, Pihlajamaki H. (2006). Association between serum 25(OH)D concentrations and bone stress fractures in finnish young men. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research. 21(9), 1483-1488. Sikora-Klak J, Narvy SJ, Yang J, Makhni E, Kharrazi FD, Mehran N. (2018). The effect of abnormal vitamin D levels in athletes. The Permanente journal 22(17), 216
18. Team RC. R: A language and environment for statistical computing. 2018. https://www.r-project.org/.%0A.
19. Zeitler C, Fritz R, Smekal G, Ekmekcioglu C. (2018). Association between the 25-hydroxyvitamin D status and physical performance in healthy recreational athletes. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 15(12), 2724.