Circulating 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Concentrations in Overweight and Obese Adults Are Explained by Sun Exposure, Skin Reflectance, and Body Composition.

Background: Obese individuals are known to be at higher risk for vitamin D deficiency than normal-weight individuals. Cutaneous synthesis is a major source of vitamin D; however, objective measurements of sun exposure are lacking in this population.

Objective: To assess the validity of a regression model using sun exposure in lean individuals to estimate serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] in overweight and obese individuals, and to develop a prediction equation for serum 25(OH)D in overweight and obese adults.

Drusen and photoreceptor abnormalities in African-Americans with intermediate non-neovascular age-related macular degeneration.

Purpose/aim: To investigate the relationship of drusen and photoreceptor abnormalities in African-American (AA) patients with intermediate non-neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Materials And Methods: AA patients with intermediate AMD (n = 11; age 52-77 years) were studied with spectral-domain optical coherence tomography. Macular location and characteristics of large drusen (≥125 µm) were determined.

Ergocalciferol from mushrooms or supplements consumed with a standard meal increases 25-hydroxyergocalciferol but decreases 25-hydroxycholecalciferol in the serum of healthy adults.

Few foods contain ergocalciferol or cholecalciferol. Treatment of mushrooms with UV light increases ergocalciferol content and could provide a dietary source of vitamin D. We evaluated the impact of consuming UV-treated white button mushrooms (Agaricus bisporus) on the vitamin D status of healthy adults.

Vitamin D intake needed to maintain target serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations in participants with low sun exposure and dark skin pigmentation is substantially higher than current recommendations.

Cutaneous cholecalciferol synthesis has not been considered in making recommendations for vitamin D intake. Our objective was to model the effects of sun exposure, vitamin D intake, and skin reflectance (pigmentation) on serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) in young adults with a wide range of skin reflectance and sun exposure. Four cohorts of participants (n = 72 total) were studied for 7-8 wk in the fall, winter, spring, and summer in Davis, CA [38.

Metabolic profiling of major vitamin D metabolites using Diels-Alder derivatization and ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

Biologically active forms of vitamin D are important analytical targets in both research and clinical practice. The current technology is such that each of the vitamin D metabolites is usually analyzed by individual assay. However, current LC-MS technologies allow the simultaneous metabolic profiling of entire biochemical pathways.

Probability estimation when some observations are grouped.

This paper considers the use of additional questions for decreasing survey non-response rates and an approach for estimating a probability based on the results obtained. In a survey, the respondents are asked to answer an original question and follow-up questions, where the answers for the follow-up questions are grouped answers for the original question. For example, respondents are asked to provide an exact number of incidents, but in cases of 'Do not know' or 'Refuse' responses, they are subsequently asked to pick an answer from a less specific categorical scale.

Medical connections: use of the internet and traditional sources of health information by rural Alabama households.

Rural household adoption of the PC and Internet for accessing medical and healthcare information was investigated using survey data collected from 305 households randomly selected from non-metropolitan, rural counties across Alabama. The diffusion-adoption model for new technologies was employed to create five adoption stages relevant to this technology and its applications to communication of information in the health field. Descriptive household characteristics of age, education, income, and children revealed differences between adoption stages, with age and education having major impacts.

Increasing awareness of health care resources for the uninsured and underinsured:a pilot study.

Programs are available to provide assistance to the uninsured, but information about how to access those programs is not readily available to the average uninsured citizen. A pilot study involving the University of Kentucky Family and Consumer Science Agents and Homemaker groups in two rural counties significantly increased the number of people who accessed one of the programs, Health Kentucky. Findings from the study could be validated in other Kentucky counties and with other types of health-related messages.