Low levels of vitamin D are related to muscle weakness, poor balance, and higher risk of falls, and can therefore have a major impact on performance and safety at work. Little knowledge exists on the association between work environment and vitamin D status. This study evaluates vitamin D status in shift workers. In this cross-sectional study, led during early springtime, 96 male shift workers at an engineering factory in Northern Italy, and 100 male daily workers operating nearby, participated. 25-OH vitamin D concentration, anthropometric indexes, fasting glycemia and triglycerides were detected. 51 shift workers underwent anamnesis collection on lifestyle and habits and determination of heel bone mineral density. Vitamin D levels were lower in shift workers than daily ones (13.4 ± 5.3 ng/mL versus 21.9 ± 10.7 ng/mL, p < 0.001). Linear regression analysis adjusted for age, body mass index and smoking habits confirms a statistically significant association between shift work and vitamin D levels (p < 0.0001). An association trend between cigarette smoking and low vitamin D values was found. No significant association was detected between the heel bone mineral density values and vitamin D levels or smoking habits. In conclusion, this cross-sectional study highlights the high prevalence of vitamin D deficit among shift workers compared with daily ones.

Nutritional status, referred to meat and vegetable food consumption, is related to folate and B 12 vitamin levels; hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy) is due to folate and B 12 vitamin-methionine metabolism imbalance, which can lead to oxidative stress, OS (imbalance between reactive oxygen species, ROS, and total antioxidant capacity, TAC). Possible early vitamin B 12 (B 12 ) deficiency can be highlighted by holotranscobalamin (HoloTC, bioactive cobalamin fraction) assay. Erythrocyte folate is a biomarker of 2-to 3-month folate storage. To evaluate nutritional status and OS we conducted an observational study on 118 occupational obese subjects (34M/84F, aged 16-69, median 46.5 years; BMI 26.5-54.1, median 33.3 kg/m 2 ) without previous cardiovascular disease. Serum TAC and ROS (spectrophotometry, Diacron International, Italy), serum B 12 and HoloTC, serum and erythrocyte folate, plasma Hcy (immunoenzymatic, AxSYM, Abbott Diagnostics, USA), lipid panel and inflammatory parameters by routine methods. All subjects showed adequate serum and erythrocyte folate levels, but HoloTC values revealed cobalamin deficiency in 30% of cases not congruent with B 12 concentrations, low only in 10%. 43% of cases showed mild HHcy ([10.5 lmol/L; median 12.44 lmol/L, IQR 11.2-16.2). OS was found by normal mean TAC values (370.5 micromolHClO/mL, n.v. [ 350) but increased mean ROS concentrations (386 CarrU, in 93% of subjects. Normal folate and B 12 vitamin levels revealed a good nutritional status in our occupational obese subjects. The presence of Oxidative Stress, due to imbalance between ROS and TAC and mild hyperhomocysteinemia may heighten the obesity-related cardiovascular risk.

No abstract