Ineffectiveness of antenatal guidance intervention for vitamin D insufficiency and deficiency in pregnant women in Kyoto, Japan

Abstract

Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the vitamin D status among healthy pregnant women in Japan, and to evaluate the effectiveness of the antenatal health guidance intervention for the pregnant women who were informed about their low vitamin D levels. Methods: We measured the level of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) using chemiluminescent immunoassay among the singleton pregnant women who received at antenatal routine check-up (8-24 weeks of gestation) with written consent during September 2017-September 2018. The measurement values were informed by the concerned physician and health guidance intervention was given to the pregnant women with inadequate Vitamin D status (25[OH]D < 30 ng/mL). At around 36 weeks of gestation, the measurement of 25(OH)D and a questionnaire regarding behavioral changes after the guidance was conducted. Results: The average value of 25(OH)D of 1192 pregnant women before the guidance was 14.89 AE 4.85 ng/mL, and the prevalence of sufficient vitamin D status (25(OH)D ≥ 30 ng/mL) was 0.67% (8/1192). Nine hundred eighty-two pregnant women who had inadequate vitamin D status were followed, thereafter-guidance prevalence of sufficiency was 1.02% (10/982); insufficiency, 14.66% (144/982); and deficiency, 84.32% (828/982), respectively. Although the prevalence of deficiency was decreased after guidance intervention significantly, the prevalence was still high and the effect on behavioral changes was a little. Conclusion:The prevalence of vitamin D sufficient status among pregnant women in Japan was extremely low, which is a serious condition. It was also revealed the effectiveness of the antenatal health guidance intervention for pregnant women was not enough.

Seasonal Serum 25(OH) Vitamin D Level and Reproductive or Immune Markers in Reproductive-Aged Women with Infertility: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study in East Japan

“…In this study, serum 25(OH)D levels in summer were the highest, and serum 25(OH)D levels in winter were the lowest. The seasonal pattern was similar to that of studies conducted in Kyoto, Japan, which is located at 35.011 • N [50,63]. However, the results of some studies were not consistent with this study.…”

“…A high prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency or deficiency has been reported in almost all age groups among males and females in Japan [30,40,41]. Furthermore, several studies have reported that the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in Japanese women is high; however, these studies focused only on pregnant women [42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50]. To our knowledge, this is the first large cohort study to investigate vitamin D levels in reproductive-aged women with infertility in Japan, specifically investigating the association between 25(OH)D levels and ovarian function or implantation-related immunological markers.…”

Organic Synthesis of New Secosteroids from Fucosterol, Its Intestinal Absorption by Caco-2 Cells, and Simulation of the Biological Activities of Vitamin D

“…Unfortunately, vitamin D deficiency is common [39,40]. For example, 98% of 5518 Japanese individuals tested were found to be vitamin D deficient [41].…”