Association between Serum Vitamin D and Bone Mineral Density in US Population

Osteoporosis is a condition where the bones become weak that affects 12.6% of the United States (US) population over 50 years of age. Vitamin D helps to improve bone health as it functions in helping reabsorb calcium from the intestines. Several studies have been conducted on the effects of vitamin D on Bone Mineral Density (BMD), where it has shown that insufficient vitamin D is associated with a reduction in BMD. The purpose is to determine the relationship between serum vitamin D and BMD of the femoral neck in the US population in National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2013-2014.Multivariable linear regression analyses were performed to describe independent associations between serum vitamin D and BMD after controlling for covariates (age, sex, ethnicity, income, BMI). The mean BMD was 0.78 g/cm2 and the mean serum vitamin D was 70.41 nmol/L, serum vitamin D was not statistically significantly associated with BMD (p = 0.416). Serum vitamin D does not statistically significantly associate with BMD. Further studies can be done in larger samples to explore this association.