Vitamin D deficiency is associated with anemia: a cross‐sectional study in healthy adults in the United States (260.3)

Objective: We aimed to examine the relationship between vitamin D status and anemia, hypothesizing that lower vitamin D status would be associated with increased risk for anemia, particularly anemia of inflammation. Methods: We conducted a cross‐sectional analysis of the Emory/Georgia Tech Predictive Health cohort (n=638), a generally healthy adult cohort. Anemia was assessed via hemoglobin concentration. Multivariable logistic regression was used to evaluate the association of vitamin D status with anemia, controlling for significant covariates of anemia. Relationships between vitamin D status and subtypes of anemia were assessed. Results: Vitamin D deficiency (serum 25‐hydroxyvitamin D < 20 ng/mL) was significantly associated with anemia in bivariate analysis (OR: 2.64; 95% CI: 1.43, 4.86). After accounting for an interaction between vitamin D deficiency and race, vitamin D deficiency was significantly associated with anemia in blacks (OR: 6.42; 95% CI: 1.88, 21.99), controlling for anemia covariates, but not in whites. When stratified by subtype of anemia vitamin D deficiency was significantly associated with anemia of inflammation only (OR: 3.11; 95% CI: 1.08, 8.91). Conclusion: Vitamin D deficiency was significantly associated with anemia, specifically anemia of inflammation in a healthy adult US cohort. Racial differences were observed in the association between vitamin D status and anemia. Grant Funding Source : Supported by: T32 DK 7734‐17, UL1 TR000454, T32 DK007298‐32S1, K23 AR054334, K24 RR023356.