Vitamin D3 Dose Requirement That Raises 25-Hydroxyvitamin D to Desirable Level in Overweight and Obese Elderly

Guidelines for the dosage of vitamin D supplementation vary widely globally.

To investigate the impact of 2 vitamin D doses, bracketed between the IOM recommended dietary allowance (RDA) and the upper tolerable limit, on vitamin D nutritional status in elderly individuals.

This post hoc analysis of data collected from a 12-month, double-blind, randomized control trial included 221 ambulatory participants (≥ 65 years) with a mean BMI of 30.2 kg/m2 and a mean baseline serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] level of 20.4 ± 7.4 ng/mL, who were recruited from 3 outpatient centers in Lebanon. All participants received 1000 mg of elemental calcium daily from calcium citrate plus the daily equivalent of either 600 IU or 3750 IU of vitamin D3.

Mean 25(OH)D level at 12 months was 26.0 ng/mL with low dose and 36.0 ng/mL with high dose vitamin D3. The proportion of participants reaching a value ≥ 20 ng/mL was 86% in the low dose, and 99% in the high dose arms, with no gender differences. The increment of 25(OH)D per 100 IU/day was 1 ng/mL with the low dose, and 0.41 ng/mL with the high dose. Serum 25(OH)D levels at 1 year were highly variable in both treatment arms. Baseline 25(OH)D level and vitamin D dose-but not age, BMI, gender, or season-were significant predictors of serum 25(OH)D level post-intervention.

The IOM Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) of 600 IU/day does not bring 97.5% of ambulatory elderly individuals above the desirable threshold of 20 ng/mL. Country-specific RDAs are best derived taking into account the observed variability and predictors of achieved 25(OH)D levels.