In April 2012, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released their Second National Report on Biochemical Indicators of Diet and Nutrition in the US Population. In the report, it was noted that the highest deficiencies were found with vitamin D. The report also showed that African Americans and Hispanics have a much higher chance of being deficient than Caucasians. The CDC found that nearly one-third of African Americans and 12 percent of Hispanics had low levels of vitamin D compared to 3 percent of Caucasians.

“This report documents that America’s racial minorities have disparate and excessive rates of vitamin D deficiency,” Gregory Plotnikoff, MD, told Wellness Times. Plotnikoff, who is a vitamin D expert, is concerned because “vitamin D deficiency is connected to the very illnesses which disproportionately affect minorities: cancer, heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, lupus and more.”

Plotnikoff goes on to ask: “How much of America’s health inequalities are due to its vitamin D inequalities?”

The research is clear

Vitamin D research continues to confirm the dangers of deficiency and the benefits of supplementation. Plotnikoff explains that there have been more than 16,000 published studies featured in scientific literature in the last two years alone. hese studies highlight a gamut of conditions that link vitamin D deficiency to everything from cancer to mental health issues to heart disease.

In February 2012, the American Journal of Cardiology reported that vitamin D deficiency is linked with a significant risk of heart disease, and is a strong predictor of all-cause death. This study, which featured 10,899 men and women, also showed that vitamin D supplementation is “significantly associated with better survival, especially in patients with documented deficiency.” In this study, 70 percent of the participants were D deficient.  

Plotnikoff says it’s important for everyone to get their vitamin D levels measured, but this new data from the CDC makes it even more imperative for African Americans and Hispanics to do so.