Vitamin D Status and Its Correlation With Anthropometric and Biochemical Indicators of Cardiometabolic Risk in Serbian Underground Coal Miners in 2016

Ivana Šarac; Jovica Jovanović; Manja Zec; Zoran Pavlović; Jasmina Debeljak-Martačić; Milica Zeković; Jelena Milešević; Mirjana Gurinović; Maria Glibetić

doi:10.3389/fnut.2021.689214

Vitamin D Status and Its Correlation With Anthropometric and Biochemical Indicators of Cardiometabolic Risk in Serbian Underground Coal Miners in 2016

Front Nutr. 2021 Aug 19:8:689214. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2021.689214. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Ivana Šarac¹, Jovica Jovanović², Manja Zec¹, Zoran Pavlović³, Jasmina Debeljak-Martačić¹, Milica Zeković¹, Jelena Milešević¹, Mirjana Gurinović¹, Maria Glibetić¹

Affiliations

¹ Laboratory for Public Health Nutrition, Centre of Research Excellence in Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Medical Research, National Institute of Republic of Serbia, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia.
² Faculty of Medicine, Department of Occupational Health, University of Niš, Niš, Serbia.
³ Department of Sanitary Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Institute for Public Health Požarevac, Požarevac, Serbia.

Abstract

The status of vitamin D in underground working coal miners and its association with their cardiometabolic health is rarely studied. This study aimed to examine vitamin D (VitD) status in Serbian underground coal miners and to correlate it with anthropometric and laboratory indicators of cardiometabolic risk. Nutritional data (food frequency questionnaire, FFQ, and two times repeated 24 h recall), anthropometric data (including segmental analysis by bio-impedance analyzer TANITA BC-545N), arterial tension, and biochemical and hematological data of 103 coal miners (aged 22-63 years) were correlated with their late summer (early September) serum 25 (OH)D levels (measured by HPLC). 68.9% of the studied coal miners were overweight/obese, and 48.5% had metabolic syndrome. Their mean VitD nutritional intakes were low: 5.3 ± 3.8 μg/day (FFQ) and 4.9 ± 8 μg/day (24 h recalls), but their mean serum 25 (OH)D levels were surprisingly high (143.7 ± 41.4 nmol/L). Only 2.9% of the coal miners had 25(OH)D levels lower than 75 nmol/L (indicating an insufficient/deficient status), while 63.2% had values above 125 nmol/L (upper optimal limit), and even 10.7% had values above 200 nmol/L. There were no statistical differences in 25 (OH)D levels in the coal miners with or without metabolic syndrome (or overweight/obesity). Interestingly, 25(OH)D levels had significant positive correlations with body mass index (BMI), fat mass (FM), fat mass percentage (FM%), limbs FM%, serum triglycerides, GGT, AST, ALT, and ALT/AST ratio, and had significant negative correlations with serum HDL-cholesterol and age. All these correlations were lost after corrections for age, FM, FM%, and legs FM%. In Serbian coal miners, high levels of early September VitD levels were observed, indicating sufficient non-working-hour sun exposure during the summer period. Furthermore, the unexpected positive correlations of VitD levels with anthropometric and biochemical parameters indicative of obesity, metabolic syndrome, and fatty liver disease were found. More research is needed on the VitD status of coal miners (particularly in the winter period) and its relationship with their cardiometabolic status.

Keywords: Vitamin D; cardiometabolic health; coal miners; lipids; metabolic syndrome; obesity; physical activity.