

Individuals with levels less than 30 nmol/L are considered as severe deficient 5. The US National Academy of Medicine (formerly the Institute of Medicine) considers a serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) level of at least 50 nmol/L as the adequate exposure to vitamin D to maintain bone health. The aging process is considered a risk of vitamin D deficiency, because of debilitated ability to synthesize vitamin D from sunlight, activation of vitamin D in the kidney, and less outdoor exercise and activity 4. Vitamin D is essential for human bone health, and severe vitamin D deficiency increases the risk of many diseasesincluding osteomalacia, osteoporosis, muscle weakness, hip fractures, diabetes, cancer, heart disease, arthritis, and poor general health in the elderly 1, 2, 3.

Vitamin D deficiency is a serious health condition worldwide. Our findings suggest that different interventional strategies are needed to improve vitamin D deficiency and its associated negative health outcomes in China and the US. In the US, males, ethnic minorities, lower income, self-rated “very bad” health, physically inactive, overweight, and obese were related to lower serum 25(OH)D levels. Older age, females, ethnic minorities, higher household income, self-rated “very bad” health, and never drinkers, were statistically significant in predicting lower serum 25(OH)D levels in China. 70.3% in China and 17.4% in the US were considered as vitamin D deficiency (30.6% and 3.4% were considered as severe deficiency). 83.5 nmol/L), with Chinese elderly lower than American elderly for every age group. We found that the mean 25(OH)D concentration was lower in China than in the US (45.1 vs. Risk factors of vitamin D deficiency were examined by multivariate regression models. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D was measured and a level of under 30/50 nmol/L was defined as vitamin D severe deficiency/deficiency.

We used data from the 2011 wave of Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS) in China (n = 2180), and 2011–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) in the US (n = 2283). We aim to compare the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among older adults (65+) in China and the United States (US). Vitamin D deficiency is a common health concern worldwide.
