Objective: Few data exist looking at vitamin D status and bone health in schoolaged boys and girls from Saudi Arabia. The present study aimed to determine the extent of poor vitamin D status in school boys and girls aged 6-18 years and to examine if there was any difference in status with age, physical activity and veiling and concomitant effects on bone. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Subjects: A total of 150 boys (7-16 years) and 150 girls (6-18 years) from local schools were divided into age categories: 6-9 years (elementary school); 10-12 years (secondary school); 13-14 years (middle years); 15-18 years (high school). Results: Vitamin D status was significantly lower in girls than boys in all age groups (P , 0?01), with the 15-18-year-old girls having the lowest level (22?0 (SD 9?4) nmol/l) in comparison to the 15-18-year-old boys (39?3 (SD 14?0) nmol/l) and the 6-9-year-old girls (41?2 (SD 9?3) nmol/l). Parathyroid hormone status was highest in the 15-18-year-old girls in comparison to boys of the same age. A total of 64 % of 15-18-year-old girls had 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) status ,25 nmol/l in comparison to 31 % in the 13-14 years age category, 26 % in the 10-12 years category and 2?5 % in the 6-9 years category. No boys had 25OHD status ,25 nmol/l. Fully veiled girls had lower 25OHD status than partly veiled or unveiled girls (P , 0?05). Low 25OHD and high parathyroid hormone was associated with lower bone mass in the 6-9 years and 13-14 years age groups (P , 0?05). Conclusions: These data suggest significant hypovitaminosis D in older adolescent females, which is a cause for concern given that there is currently no public health policy for vitamin D in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
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