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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Boston, Massachusetts » Jean Mayer Human Nutrition Research Center On Aging » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #247079
Title: Adiposity, cardiometabolic risk, and vitamin D status: the Framingham Heart Study

Author
item CHENG, SUSAN - Framingham Heart Study
item MASSARO, JOSEPH - Framingham Heart Study
item FOX, CAROLINE - Framingham Heart Study
item LARSON, MARTIN - Framingham Heart Study
item KEYES, MICHELLE - Framingham Heart Study
item MCCABE, ELIZABETH - Framingham Heart Study
item ROBINS, SANDER - Framingham Heart Study
item O'DONNELL, CHRISTOPHER - Framingham Heart Study
item HOFFMAN, UDO - Framingham Heart Study
item JACQUES, PAUL - Jean Mayer Human Nutrition Research Center On Aging At Tufts University
item BOOTH, SARAH - Jean Mayer Human Nutrition Research Center On Aging At Tufts University
item VASAN, RAMACHANDRAN - Framingham Heart Study
item WOLF, MYLES - University Of Miami
item WANG, THOMAS - Framingham Heart Study

Submitted to: Diabetes
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/22/2009
Publication Date: 1/1/2010
Citation: Cheng, S., Massaro, J., Fox, C., Larson, M., Keyes, M., Mccabe, E., Robins, S., O'Donnell, C., Hoffman, U., Jacques, P., Booth, S.L., Vasan, R., Wolf, M., Wang, T. 2010. Adiposity, cardiometabolic risk, and vitamin D status: the Framingham Heart Study. Diabetes. 59:242-248.

Interpretive Summary: Because vitamin D deficiency is associated with a variety of chronic diseases, understanding the characteristics that promote vitamin D deficiency in otherwise healthy adults could have important clinical implications. Few studies relating vitamin D deficiency to obesity have included direct measures of the adiposity, which is defined as the amount of body fat. Furthermore, the degree to which vitamin D is associated with chronic diseases after adjusting for adiposity measures is unclear. We investigated the relations of vitamin D concentrations in blood [serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D)] with measures of cardiovascular disease risk in 3,890 non-diabetic individuals; 1,882 had volumes of subcutaneous (below the skin) adipose tissue (SAT) and visceral (the area in the abdomen that contains the intestines, the stomach, and the liver) adipose tissue (VAT) measured by multi-detector computed tomography (CT). Lower vitamin D concentrations [25(OH)D] were associated with winter season, higher waist circumference, and higher serum insulin. Furthermore, lower vitamin D concentrations were associated with higher SAT and VAT. Higher amounts of total body fat were correlated with lower concentrations of vitamin D across different categories of body mass index (BMI), including in lean individuals (BMI <25 kg/m2). The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency (25(OH)D <20 ng/mL ) was 3-fold higher in those with high SAT and high VAT than in those with low SAT and low VAT. In conclusion, vitamin D status is strongly associated with variation in body fat. The mechanisms by which body fat promotes vitamin D deficiency warrant further study.

Technical Abstract: Objective: Because vitamin D deficiency is associated with a variety of chronic diseases, understanding the characteristics that promote vitamin D deficiency in otherwise healthy adults could have important clinical implications. Few studies relating vitamin D deficiency to obesity have included direct measures of adiposity. Furthermore, the degree to which vitamin D is associated with metabolic traits after adjusting for adiposity measures is unclear. Research Design and Methods: We investigated the relations of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) concentrations with indices of cardiometabolic risk in 3,890 non-diabetic individuals; 1,882 had subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) and visceral adipose tissue (VAT) volumes measured by multi-detector computed tomography (CT). Results: In multivariable-adjusted regression models, 25(OH)D was inversely associated with winter season, waist circumference, and serum insulin ( P<0.005 for all). In models further adjusted for CT measures, 25(OH)D was inversely related to SAT (-1.1 ng/mL per standard deviation [SD] increment in SAT, P=0.016) and VAT (-2.3 ng/mL per SD, P<0.0001). The association of 25(OH)D with insulin resistance measures became non-significant after adjustment for VAT. Higher adiposity volumes were correlated with lower 25(OH)D across different categories of body mass index (BMI), including in lean individuals (BMI <25 kg/m2). The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency (25(OH)D <20 ng/mL ) was 3-fold higher in those with high SAT and high VAT than in those with low SAT and low VAT (P<0.0001). Conclusion: Vitamin D status is strongly associated with variation in subcutaneous and especially visceral adiposity. The mechanisms by which adiposity promotes vitamin D deficiency warrant further study.