In this study, we aimed to estimate serum 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25-OH-D) in Asian Indians and test for association between 25-OH-D levels, insulin resistance (IR) and metabolic syndrome (MS). Serum 25-OH-D was measured in a cross-sectional sample of 441 Indians, aged 39.7±12.8 years (237 men and 204 women) with 27.9% prevalence of MS. Vitamin D insufficiency (12.5 to o50 nmol l À1 ) and hypovitaminosis D (50 to o100 nmol l À1 ) were present in 65.6 and 31.1% of participants, respectively. The 25-OH-D levels did not differ significantly between sexes (P ¼ 0.

Background: India is undergoing a rapid epidemiological transition, from underweight to overweight/obese population. Obesity is a major risk factor in type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, and is also implicated as a factor in neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease. A robust, pan-Indian estimate of obesity is not yet available. Purpose: This study estimates the pan-Indian prevalence of obesity, stratified across nonmodifiable (age and gender) and modifiable (education and physical activity levels) factors, and across zones and urban/rural. Methodology: Data for 1,00,531 adults from a nationwide randomized cluster sample survey ( Niyantrita Madhumeha Bharata 2017, phase 1) were analyzed. Obesity was determined using body mass index, and cross-tabulations were calculated across zones, age, gender, education, physical activity, and area. To determine statistical significance, t-tests were used. The odds of obesity within each category of the various factors were calculated using binary logistic regression. Results: Prevalence of obesity in India is 40.3%. Zonal variations were seen as follows: south highest at 46.51% and east lowest at 32.96%. Obesity was higher among women than men (41.88% vs. 38.67%), urban than rural (44.17% vs. 36.08%), and over 40 than under 40 (45.81% vs. 34.58%). More education implied a higher obesity (44.6% college vs. 38% uneducated), as did lowered physical activity (43.71% inactive vs. 32.56% vigorously active). The odds ratio for physical activity was 3.83, stronger than age (1.58), education (1.4), urban (1.3), and gender (1.2). Conclusion: Obesity levels in India are very high, across all zones. The odds of being obese increases with age, and is higher among women and among urban dwellers. Obesity is the highest among aging urban men and women who are college educated and are sedentary. Physical activity and aging are the strongest determinants of obesity. Given the high cost of obesity in terms of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and Alzheimer’s disease, urgent public health measures are necessary to reduce its impact.

No abstract

The relationship between vitamin D deficiency and stroke was cross-sectionally evaluated in the high-risk Asian Indian population. Age- and gender-matched, 239 ischemic stroke patients and 241 control subjects were recruited. Vitamin D status was estimated by measuring serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) levels. After multivariate adjustment for a range of potential covariates in a logistic regression model, an inverse association was found between serum 25(OH)D concentration and risk of ischemic stroke: subjects with severely low 25(OH)D levels (⩽9.33 ng ml(-1)) were found to be at 3.13-fold (95% confidence interval (CI), (1.22-8.07)) increased risk of ischemic stroke as compared with those with high levels. Adjustment for systolic blood pressure levels was found to abrogate this association (odds ratio (OR)=2.00, 95% CI=0.61-6.50). On stratification, a pronounced association was found between low 25(OH)D and risk of ischemic stroke in hypertensives, OR=13.54, 95% CI=1.94-94.43 as compared with no association in non-hypertensives, (Pinteraction=0.04). We conclude that high blood pressure partly explains the association between 25(OH)D levels and ischemic stroke. Presence of hypertension amply aggravates the risk of ischemic stroke associated with low vitamin D levels. Meticulous management of hypertension, regular monitoring of serum 25(OH)D levels and treatment of severe vitamin D deficiency, particularly in hypertensive subjects, could help in effective prevention of stroke.

Aim:The aim of this study was to investigate the association of T-786C, G894T and 4a/b polymorphisms in the endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) gene with early-onset ischemic stroke in South Indians. Methods: We enrolled 177 patients diagnosed with ischemic stroke aged between 15 to 45 years and 219 age-and gender-matched healthy controls. Genotypes of eNOS T-786C, G894T and 4a/b were identified by polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism. Results: The allele and genotype frequencies of eNOS 4a/b, T-786C and G894T did not differ significantly in the patient group compared to controls. Logistic regression analysis indicated the 4a allele to be an independent predictor of ischemic stroke in females (dominant model: OR, 2.46; 95% CI, 1.11 to 5.43; p 0.026). Marked differences were found in the prevalence of the minor alleles of the three variants when comparing the South Indian population with the reported frequencies from Caucasians. There was also a contrast in the frequencies of 4ab and T-786C variants from other Asians. The genotypes of all three variants were found to be in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. There was a lack of significant linkage disequilibria among the variants, and none of the estimated haplotypes increased or decreased the risk of ischemic stroke. Conclusion