ReviewThe Proceedings of the Nutrition Society2020
Vitamin D deficiency in western dwelling South Asian populations: an unrecognised epidemic.
Review in The Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 29 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
29 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 43 citations in OpenAlex.
- Global Genetic Variation in Circulating 25-Hydroxyvitamin D: A Systematic Review of GWAS Evidence Across Different Ancestral Groups.Nutrients · 2026Pooled it
- Vitamin D content and prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in patients with epilepsy: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in nutrition · 2024Pooled it
- Effect of Vitamin D Deficiency on Liver Cancer Risk: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention : APJCP · 2021Pooled it
- The Effect of Vitamin D Supplementation in Pregnant Women with Overweight and Obesity: A Randomised Controlled Trial.Nutrients · 2023Trial
- Perceptions, beliefs, and experiences of living with osteoporosis among UK South Asian older women.Archives of osteoporosis · 2026Article
- Primary health care experiences of Indian immigrants living with chronic illnesses in Australia: a qualitative study.Primary health care research & development · 2026Article
- Baseline serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels as a predictor of periapical healing and clinical success after primary root canal treatment: A prospective, observational, and cohort study.Journal of conservative dentistry and endodontics · 2026Article
- Vitamin D Serum Status and Associated Factors Among Women with Cervical Lesions.Epidemiologia (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Culturally Informed Dietary Approaches for Cardiometabolic Risk Reduction in South Asians: An Evidence-Based Review.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- Postprandial glycemic response in different ethnic groups in East London and its association with vitamin D status: Study protocol for an acute randomized crossover trial.Nutrition and health · 2025Article
- 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Status and Its Predictors in Greek and Cypriot Subsets of the UK Biobank Cohort.Nutrients · 2025Article
- Vitamin D, muscle strength and function in South Asian women aged ≥ 60 years living in the North of England: a cross-sectional observational study.European journal of nutrition · 2025Observational
- Phenotypic Differences and Clinical Outcomes of South Asian Children With IBD: A Singapore-Malaysia Study From the Asian PIBD Registry Network.Journal of gastroenterology and hepatology · 2025Article
- Association between vitamin D levels with IL-6 and IL-10 in umbilical cord blood of infants.Narra J · 2024Article
- Prevalence of low vitamin D levels among older US Asian and Pacific Islander adults.Osteoporosis international : a journal established as result of cooperation between the European Foundation for Osteoporosis and the National Osteoporosis Foundation of the USA · 2024Article
- Exploring the Role of Vitamin D Deficiency Correction in Heart Failure Management: Insights and Prospects.International journal of heart failure · 2024Article
- Cross-sectional study of the associations between circulating vitamin D concentrations and insulin resistance in children aged 9-10 years of South Asian, black African Caribbean and white European origins.Journal of epidemiology and community health · 2023Article
- Osteoporosis and Fracture Risk among Older US Asian Adults.Current osteoporosis reports · 2023Review
- Association between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations and hypertension among adults in North Sudan: a community-based cross-sectional study.BMC cardiovascular disorders · 2023Article
- Article
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Authors and funding
1 author at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
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Abstract
Vitamin D deficiency (25-hydroxyvitamin D; 25(OH)D) is at epidemic proportions in western dwelling South Asian populations, including severe deficiency (<12⋅5 nmol/l) in 27-60% of individuals, depending on season. The paper aimed to review the literature concerning vitamin D concentrations in this population group. Research from the UK and Europe suggests a high prevalence of South Asians with 25(OH)D concentration <25 nmol/l, with most having a 25(OH)D concentration of <50 nmol/l. In Canada, South Asians appear to have a slightly higher 25(OH)D concentration. There are few studies from the United States, South Africa and Australasia. Reasons for vitamin D deficiency include low vitamin D intake, relatively high adiposity, sun exposure avoidance and wearing of a covered dress style for cultural reasons. Possible health effects of deficiency include bone diseases such as rickets and hypocalcaemia in children and osteomalacia in adults. Vitamin D deficiency may also increase the risk of other chronic diseases. Increased fortification of food items relevant to South Asian groups (e.g. chapatti flour), as well as increased use of vitamin D supplements may help reduce this epidemic. Introducing culturally acceptable ways of increasing skin exposure to the sun in South Asian women may also be beneficial but further research is needed to assess the effectiveness of different approaches. There may be a need for a South Asian specific vitamin D dietary intake guideline in western countries. To conclude, vitamin D deficiency is epidemic in South Asians living in western countries and there is a clear need for urgent public health action.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.