A recent study from Dubai reveals a high prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency among children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes, raising concerns about potential impacts on metabolic control and bone health in the region.
A new study from Mohammed Bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences and Al Jalila Children’s Specialty Hospital in Dubai has found that vitamin D insufficiency is common among children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes, even though most had normal parathyroid hormone and calcium levels. The retrospective cross-sectional analysis covered 102 patients aged three to 18 and suggests that calcium balance may still be preserved in many young patients despite low vitamin D status.
The findings sit against a wider backdrop of long-standing concern about vitamin D deficiency in the UAE. Reporting in Gulf News and later reviews indexed on PubMed have described high deficiency rates across the country, despite abundant sunshine, with indoor lifestyles, clothing habits and limited food fortification often cited as contributing factors. The study’s authors say their work adds region-specific data that has been scarce for children with type 1 diabetes.
Among the patients included, 73.3% were vitamin D insufficient and 5.8% were deficient, while 63.2% had normal parathyroid hormone levels and 72.9% normal calcium levels. Half had been prescribed vitamin D supplements, most commonly cholecalciferol, and 69.6% were using insulin. The research also found a statistically significant link between lower vitamin D levels and higher HbA1c, a marker of poorer blood sugar control, as well as a negative association between vitamin D and body mass index.
The authors caution that the study was limited by its single-centre design and by the fact that vitamin D and parathyroid hormone are not measured routinely in diabetes care, which reduced the sample size. Even so, they argue the results support closer monitoring of vitamin D in paediatric type 1 diabetes and suggest that longer follow-up studies are needed to determine whether supplementation can improve metabolic outcomes and protect bone health. They also call for population-specific reference ranges, noting that widely used vitamin D thresholds may not reflect the needs of children in the Middle East.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
