Vitamin D Levels in Men in a Single Primary Care Practice Near Boston
Perry Karfunkel MD, PhD*
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: Perry.R.Karfunkel{at}lahey.org.
 |
Abstract |
|---|
Vitamin D levels in the general population have been studied in the past; however, these studies have not directed particular attention to men, nor have they studied patients across all age groups. The present retrospective report documents the vitamin D levels of all the male patients in a single primary care practice near Boston who scheduled their own physical examinations over a 1year period. Six hundred seventy-five men had their vitamin D levels assessed, and 228 (34%) had levels below 20 ng/ml and 90 of these men (16%) had levels below 15 ng/ml. The widely accepted lower limit for normal vitamin D levels is 20 ng/ml, although specialists advise goal levels of at least 30 ng/ml. Of the 675 men studied, 83% had levels below 30 ng/ml. Men reported to have serum levels of vitamin D below 20 ng/ml included those taking multivitamins daily. Subgroups of Indian-born and Chinese-born patients, most of whom are software engineers working around Boston, were almost universally identified to have low levels of vitamin D.
