The vitamin D paradox in Black Americans: a systems-based approach to investigating clinical practice, research, and public health - expert panel meeting report
BMC Proceedings, May 2018, 12:6 |
LaVerne L. Brown, Barbara Cohen, Derrick Tabor, Giovanna Zappalà, Padma Maruvadam Paul M. Coates
- Pardox: Black Americans need less Vitamin D for strong bones than Whites
- Apparently not mentioned in this discussion, Black American need as much vitamin D for non-bone health
See also VitaminDWiki
Overview Dark Skin and Vitamin D contains the following summary
FACT - - People with dark skins have more health problems and higher mortality rate than those with light skins
FACT - - People with dark skins have low levels of vitamin D
FACT - - People with light skins who have low vitamin D have health problems
OBSERVATION - - The health problems of whites with low level of vitamin D are similar to those with dark skins
CONCLUSION - - People with dark skins have more health problems due to low levels of vitamin D
African American Health Disparities are associated with low Vitamin D - Grant Feb 2021
Low Vitamin D increases health problems - independent of skin color
Blacks die more often than whites of many diseases (they have less vitamin D) – 2012 contains the following summary
Cancer Facts & Figures for African Americans Cancer.org
- “African Americans have the highest death rate and shortest survival of any racial and ethnic group in the US for most cancers”
- Has a huge number of tables and charts, Note: Vitamin D is not mentioned
Leading Causes of Death as of March 2018
| All Ages Death rate | Black | White | Ratio |
| Heart diseases | 217 | 171 | 1.27 |
| Cancer | 199 | 170 | 1.17 |
| Cerebrovascular diseases | 51 | 36 | 1.4 |
| Diabetes | 40 | 19 | 2.0 |
Rates per 100,000 Age adjusted Non-Hispanic
Items in both categories Bone and Skin-dark are listed here:
- Vitamin D should be an almost universal feature of the care of young adults with sickle cell disease – May 2018
- Vitamin D paradox – Blacks need Vit D for health, but not as much D for strong bones – May 2018
- Sickle Cell clinical trial will inject 300,000 IU of vitamin D – RCT due 2020
- Sickle Cell children need more than 7,000 IU of vitamin D daily – May 2015
- Overview Sickle Cell and Vitamin D
- Sickle cell Vitamin D deficiency corrected with 160 K IU loading dose – July 2014
- Bone density does not decrease with lower vitamin D levels in blacks as it does in whites – April 2014
- Vitamin D different relationship between whites and blacks for bone and plaque – June 2012
- Sickle cell and low vitamin D – 3 presentations Dec 2012
- Forearm fracture 3.5X more often in black children with low levels of vitamin D – Sept 2012
- Sickle Cell Anemia: 64 percent had less than 10ng of vitamin D – April 2012
- Black seniors near equator: increased vitamin D decreases bone density – Sept 2011
- 14000 IU vitamin D (50000 twice a week) often stops Sickle Cell pain
- Blacks may not need as much Vitamin D (for their bones)
- Low vitamin D before orthopedic surgery – dark skin 5X more likely – Oct 2010
- Arthritis 2X as severe in African-Americans - April 2010
- Blacks may not need as much Vitamin D (for their bones)
- Bone loss during black pregnancies – 4000 IU of vitamin D was not enough – Dec 2017
- Differences in black and non-black mortality and vitamin D – Oct 2012
- Blacks die more often than whites of many diseases (they have less vitamin D) – 2012
- Diabetes (Type 1) 14X more likely in dark skin children with low levels of vitamin D – May 2015
- Blacks are more obese, have lower Vitamin D, and have more Cancer etc. than whites – Feb 2018
- Crohn's disease in black children is worse in 6 ways – Dec 2015
Download the PDF from VitaminDWiki
The Office of Dietary Supplements, the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, the National Institute on Aging, and the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, all components of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, co-sponsored an expert panel meeting to discuss the vitamin D paradox in Black Americans. The paradox is that despite markedly low (or “deficient”) measures of vitamin D status in Black Americans, the incidence of falls, fractures, or osteopenia are significantly lower compared to White American counterparts with similar vitamin D status. Six panelists were invited to engage in guided discussions on the state of the science with respect to key knowledge gaps impacting vitamin D status and bone health. They were also asked to reflect on best approaches for advancing the science.
A central theme throughout the discussions was that there may be many factors that impact Vitamin D levels in Black Americans and understanding these factors may be key to understanding mechanisms for improving bone health in all populations. Data presented showed that although adiposity, skin pigmentation, vitamin D binding protein polymorphisms, and genetics all contributed to differences in 25(OH)D levels in Black vs. White Americans, no one factor alone could fully explain the vitamin D paradox in Black Americans. However, the panelists did agree that the paradox is significant and warrants further investigation.
There was consensus that Black Americans gained no skeletal benefits from high doses of vitamin D supplementation, and that high levels of the biomarker of vitamin D status, serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D or 25(OH)D, in this population are almost certain to result in adverse effects. Some panelists proposed that additional studies are needed so that the Institute of Medicine (IOM) can better define the safe upper limits of vitamin D intake in this and other subpopulations. Others suggested a need for better, more generalizable biomarkers of bone health to advance the science.
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