According to a new research, low level of vitamin D in children is associated with subclinical atherosclerosis more than 25 years later into their adulthood.
Researchers from the University of Turku in Finland state that low levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) during childhood were associated with increased adulthood carotid intima-media thickness (IMT).
Atherosclerosis is a condition in which plaque builds up within the arteries, hampering blood flow to the body. Plaque contains fatty substances and cholesterol mostly but will also include fibrin, which are blood-clotting material, calcium and waste products from the cells.
Markus Juonala, MD, PhD, of the University of Turku in Finland, and the lead author of the study, said, “Our results showed an association between low [25(OH)D] levels in childhood and increased occurrence of subclinical atherosclerosis in adulthood. The association was independent of conventional cardiovascular risk factors, including serum lipids, blood pressure, smoking, diet, physical activity, obesity indices and socioeconomic status.”
In their study, the researchers analyzed 2,148 patients from the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study who were aged 3 to 18 years at baseline in 1980. The researchers reexamined the patients in 2007 when they were aged 30 and 45 years. They also measured childhood levels of 25(OH)D from stored serum, in 2010.
The researchers also measured the carotid IMT, a marker of structural atherosclerosis, using ultrasound technology on the posterior wall of the left carotid artery.
They found that the patients with the lowest levels of 25-OH vitamin D during their childhood had dramatically higher instances of carotid thickness, making them likelier to have higher risks of atherosclerosis.
The researchers have stated that children should receive ample levels of vitamin D as part of a healthy diet. They also added that that further studies need to be carried out to determine whether or not low levels of vitamin D caused thickening in the carotid arteries of the subjects.
The findings were published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
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