Vitamin D deficiency and depression among women from an urban community in a tropical country

Abstract

Objective: To determine the association of vitamin D status with depression and health-related quality of life among women. Design: This was a cross-sectional study conducted among women in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Sociodemographic characteristics, physical activity status, perceived depression and health-related quality of life were assessed via a selfadministered questionnaire. Fasting blood samples were taken for the analysis of 25-hydroxyvitamin D, parathyroid hormone, fasting blood glucose and full lipid profile. Complex samples multiple logistic regression analysis was performed. Setting: Public secondary schools in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Subjects: Seven hundred and seventy female teachers were included. Results: The mean age of participants was 41·15 (95 % CI 40·51, 41·78) years and the majority were ethnic Malays. Over 70 % of them had vitamin D deficiency (<20 ng/ml or <50 nmol/l) and two-thirds were at risk for depression. In the multivariate analysis, ethnic Malays (adjusted OR (aOR) = 14·72; 95 % CI 2·12, 102·21) and Indians (aOR = 14·02; 95 % CI 2·27, 86·59), those at risk for depression (aOR = 1·88, 95 % CI 1·27, 2·79) and those with higher parathyroid hormone level (aOR = 1·13; 95 % CI 1·01, 1·26) were associated with vitamin D deficiency, while vitamin D deficiency was negatively associated with mental health-related quality of life (Mental Component Summary) scores (aOR = 0·98; 95 % CI 0·97, 0·99). Conclusions: Vitamin D deficiency is significantly associated with depression and mental health-related quality of life among women in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Vitamin D deficiency is a global public health problem affecting a billion people worldwide (1) . Malaysia is a tropical country located near the equator. Being close to the equator, Malaysia enjoys abundant sunshine throughout the year. On average, Malaysia receives about 6 h of sunshine per day. With the exception of the monsoon seasons, it is extremely rare for Malaysians to have a stretch of days with completely no sunshine. However, the Malaysian population, especially the ethnic Malay and Indian women, have been found to be more susceptible to vitamin D deficiency (2,3) . The role of vitamin D is well established in Ca homeostasis and bone health (4,5) . Current evidence shows that vitamin D deficiency is also associated with increased risk for metabolic syndrome (MetS), certain types of cancer, type 2 diabetes mellitus and CVD (6,7) .Depression is one of the leading causes of disability and mortality worldwide. Globally, about 840 million people suffer from depression (8) . The National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2011 in Malaysia reported that the prevalence of lifetime depression and current depression was 2·4 % and 1·8 %, respectively (9) , using the Mini International Neuropsychiatry Interview (MINI). Although there is a variation in the prevalence of depression using different tools, mental health problems namely depression are health conditions that should not be overlooked. Its consequences include impairment in func...

The Association between Depression and vitamin D level with disease activity in patient with rheumatoid arthritis

“…Although several studies have report a higher rate of depression among patients with RA in comparison with the general population (4-8), a 10year longitudinal study on 6153 patients did not show higher scores on depression measures or more common depressive symptoms in patients with RA compared to those with other clinical conditions (15). However, depression was either present, or likely to be present in 43.6% of our participants.…”

“…While some studies have confirmed associations between depression and the course, disease activity, clinical symptoms of the illness, as well as several psychosocial and demographic factors in people with RA (10)(11)(12), others have introduced the socioeconomic status of the patients, rather than the clinical features or activity of RA, to be linked with depression (13,14). Besides, there is conflicting data regarding association of vitamin D and depression (15,16). On the other hand, vitamin D is associated with disease activity in patients with RA (17).…”

Factors Associated with Bone Health in Malaysian Middle-Aged and Elderly Women Assessed via Quantitative Ultrasound

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Vitamin D concentration effect in health care and sport performance

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