Vitamin D is a potential antidepressant in psychiatric outpatients
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BACKGROUND: Anxiety and depression are globally-common disorders. In Jordan, the number of people visiting psychiatric clinics has been increasing over the past few years. Low level of vitamin D is associated with musculoskeletal pain (MSP) and is increasingly linked to the pathology of mental disorders. OBJECTIVE: To assess the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among psychiatric outpatients and their response to vitamin D supplementation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 74 outpatients and gender- and age-matched controls were involved. Outpatients were prediagnosed by a psychiatrist to have mental disorders (anxiety, depression, others). The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was used to assess psychological symptoms before and after treatment. Patients with low vitamin D received oral vitamin D supplementation. RESULTS: 83.8% had vitamin D deficiency, and 95.95% experienced MSP compared to 40.6% and 0.0% of the controls, respectively. There was a statistically significant difference in vitamin D level (p = 0.011) and the total number of pain sites (p = 0.032) among psychiatric outpatient subgroups. HADS-anxiety and HADS-depression were significantly and inversely associated with vitamin D level and total daily calcium intake, and positively associated with pain severity. Relative to baseline, all measured outcome parameters significantly improved after vitamin D supplementation plus dairy products in 40 psychiatric outpatients. CONCLUSION: Vitamin D deficiency and MSP were very common among Jordanian psychiatric outpatients independent of diagnostic categories. Vitamin D supplementation plus increased dairy-product intake had a significant positive impact on physical and mental health status in psychiatric outpatients. Screening for vitamin D deficiency and daily calcium intake could be routine for psychiatric evaluation.
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Vitamin D and PTH status among adolescent and young females with severe dysmenorrhea.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate Vitamin D and parathyroid hormone (PTH) status among adolescent and young females with severe and very severe dysmenorrhea. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study in specific selected sample. SETTING: One Jordanian university. PARTICIPANTS: Fifty-six females, ages between 17 and 24 years, with severe and very severe dysmenorrhea were surveyed regarding demographics, pain with menstruation, and dietary intake of dairy products. Plasma Vitamin D, PTH levels were measured. RESULTS: About 61% of the studied population experience very severe dysmenorrhea. Half of participants had dairy intake less than 1 serving per day. The majority of participants (80%) had insufficient plasma vitamin D and 48% of them had hyperparathyroidism. CONCLUSION: A high prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency and secondary hyperparathyroidism and/or low dietary calcium intake among adolescent and young adult females who experience severe and very severe dysmenorrhea may negatively affect bone metabolism during achievement of peak bone mass at a young age and adverse bone health at older age.

Premenstrual symptoms in dysmenorrheic college students: prevalence and relation to vitamin D and parathyroid hormone levels.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of premenstrual symptoms (PMS) due to primary dysmenorrhea among a sample of university female students, and to explore possible association with vitamin D and parathyroid (PTH) levels, as well as frequency of consumption of dairy products. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study. SETTING: One Jordanian university. SUBJECTS: A total of 177 female students aged between 18 and 24 years who experienced primary dysmenorrhea participated in the study and completed a self administered questionnaire to collect information concerning demographics, menstruation-related information, associated specified premenstrual symptoms, and consumption of dairy products. Plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin vitamin D level and intact parathyroid hormone level were measured. RESULTS: Of the 177 participants 91.5% had two or more symptoms among which fatigue, mood swings, anxiety, abdominal bloating, and depression were the most prevalent symptoms. There was no evident association between presence of symptoms and vitamin D status, PTH level or dairy products consumption. Headaches and social withdrawal were significantly lower in those women who consumed high amounts of dairy products. CONCLUSION: Premenstrual symptoms are very common in young women with primary dysmenorrhea. PMS has no relation to levels of vitamin D, parathyroid hormone or dairy products consumption. Headache and social withdrawal may be affected by dairy product consumption.

Hb level in relation to vitamin D status in healthy infants and toddlers.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the presence of an association between vitamin D deficiency and anaemia in Jordanian infants and toddlers, in whom both vitamin D deficiency and anaemia have previously been proved to be common separately. DESIGN: Cross-sectional prospective study. SETTING: Department of Paediatrics, Princess Rahma Teaching Hospital, Jordan. SUBJECTS: Healthy infants and children aged 6-36 months who were seen for primary care. RESULTS: Out of 203 infants and toddlers included in the study, the anaemia prevalence was 40·4 %. The prevalence of anaemia among infants (n 110) was 51·8 %, whereas it was 26·9 % among toddlers (n 93). No association between vitamin D status and anaemia was found. CONCLUSIONS: Vitamin D deficiency is not a risk for anaemia in infants and toddlers.

Vitamin D deficiency among healthy infants and toddlers: a prospective study from Irbid, Jordan.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among healthy infants and toddlers, as well as its associated factors, in Irbid, Jordan. METHODS: A total of 275 subjects (136 infants and 139 toddlers) aged 6-36 months participated in this study. Information concerning sociodemographic characteristics and early feeding patterns was collected using a self-guided questionnaire. Plasma vitamin D, calcium, phosphorous, and alkaline phosphatase activity were measured. RESULTS: The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency was 28% (16.7% for severe vitamin D deficiency and 11.3% for vitamin D deficiency) and vitamin D insufficiency was 28.4%. Plasma calcium and alkaline phosphatase levels showed no correlation with the vitamin D status of the study population. For both age groups, a significant association was found between vitamin D status and sun exposure (P < 0.001). A significant association between infant feeding practices and vitamin D status was found (P < 0.001). Infants who were exclusively breast-fed had higher risk for vitamin D deficiency and vitamin D insufficiency than those who were bottle-fed. Multivariate logistic regression analyses results showed that female sex, low sun exposure and exclusive breast-feeding were the main determinants of vitamin D levels. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency is considered to be high among northern Jordanian infants and toddlers. Sun exposure of less than 30 min daily and exclusively breast-feeding are the main factors for developing vitamin D deficiency.

Influence of dietary intake of dairy products on dysmenorrhea.

AIM: To determine the frequency of dysmenorrhea and its associated symptoms amongst a number of adolescent female students and to investigate the possible association between daily dairy product intake and dysmenorrhea. METHODS: A self-assessment questionnaire was completed by 127 female university students aged between 19 and 24 years. Participants gave information that included demographics, the nature, type, and severity of pain associated with menstruation if any, management used to relieve dysmenorrhea, associated symptoms, and a general assessment of dietary intake of dairy products. RESULTS: The prevalence of primary dysmenorrhea in the population studied was 87.4% with the majority of the participants' pain symptoms beginning a few days before and continuing through the first two days of menstruation. Forty-six percent of students were found to have severe dysmenorrhea. Abdominal bloating was the most frequently expressed symptom associated with dysmenorrhea amongst the population studied. Dysmenorrhea and associated symptoms were found in significantly fewer female students who consumed three or four servings of dairy products per day as compared to participants who consumed no dairy products. CONCLUSION: Primary dysmenorrhea is common in young women. This study helps us to better understand the relationship between low dietary intake of dairy products and the risk of dysmenorrhea.