Association of Vitamin D Deficiency with Hypertension in Uninsured Women

Vitamin D deficiency is an epidemic in the United States. Uninsured women are at high risk due to a lower intake of vitamin D and limited sun exposure. We examined the association between vitamin D deficiency and hypertension in 96 uninsured women at a County Free Medical Clinic in urban Michigan. Questionnaires were used to obtain information about demographics, medical history including hypertension, and dietary habits. Measurements including blood pressure and serum 25(OH)D level were also collected. Prevalence of hypertension was higher in subjects with 25(OH)D less than 50nmol/l compared with others (85% vs. 27.3%, p = 0.014). For every 1 nmol/L decrease in serum 25(OH)D, there was an increase in the systolic and diastolic blood pressure by 0.20 (p =0.006) and 0.13 (p =0.003) mm of Hg respectively. These results demonstrate a high prevalence of hypertension in the vitamin D deficient, uninsured female population