Table 1.
Demographics and vitamin D awareness of subjects
| Parameters | Boys | Girls | P-value |
|---|---|---|---|
| N | 1188 | 1038 | |
| Age (years) | 15.1 ± 2.2 | 15.1 ± 2.0 | NS |
| Skin Color | |||
| Fair | 31.4 | 39.1 | < 0.001 |
| Light Brown | 60.1 | 56.4 | |
| Dark Brown | 7.8 | 4.4 | |
| Black | 0.7 | 0.1 | |
| Housing | |||
| Apartment | 33.5 | 25.2 | <0.001 |
| Villa | 63.4 | 69.3 | |
| Public House | 3.0 | 5.5 | |
| Education | |||
| Elementary | 5.9 | 2.9 | NS |
| Primary | 55.8 | 54.5 | |
| Secondary | 38.1 | 42.3 | |
| College/Post-Graduate | 0.3 | 0.3 | |
| Do you take vitamin D supplements? | 45.7 | 41.9 | NS |
| Vitamin D Knowledge* | |||
| Have you heard about vitamin D sources in school? | 45.7 | 47.9 | NS |
| Have you heard about vitamin D sources in primary care centers? | 27.5 | 32.1 | 0.018 |
| Does 30 min exposure to sun provide enough calcium? | 63.9 | 57.8 | 0.002 |
| Does 30 min exposure to sun provide enough vitamin D? | 76.5 | 72.1 | 0.011 |
| Are vegetables rich in vitamin D? | 79.1 | 70.4 | <0.001 |
| Are fruits rich in vitamin D? | 84.6 | 75.3 | <0.001 |
| Does breastfeeding contain enough vitamin D? | 81.5 | 71.7 | <0.001 |
| Is vitamin D important in calcium absorption? | 84.4 | 83.8 | NS |
| Does vitamin D deficiency lead to rickets in children? | 90.9 | 85.6 | < 0.001 |
| Does vitamin D deficiency lead to osteomalacia? | 85.3 | 84.1 | NS |
| Does vitamin D deficiency lead to osteoporosis? | 91.4 | 89.7 | NS |
| What is the recommended dose for vitamin D? | |||
| 40-80 IU | 42.0 | 41.6 | 0.016 |
| 400-800 IU | 51.7 | 55.0 | |
| 4000-8000 IU | 6.4 | 3.4 | |
| Sunlight Exposure | |||
| Do you expose yourself to sunlight? | 77.5 | 54.3 | <0.001 |
| Frequency of sunlight exposure | |||
| One to three times daily | 55.7 | 41.2 | <0.001 |
| One to two times per week | 31.3 | 33.2 | |
| Three to five times per week | 13.1 | 25.6 | |
| Time of sunlight exposure | |||
| Sunrise to 10 am | 37.3 | 38.1 | NS |
| 10-am-3 pm | 35.6 | 35.7 | |
| After 3 pm | 27.2 | 26.2 | |
| Do you expose yourself to sunlight all-year through? | 62.9 | 41.8 | <0.001 |
| Do you expose yourself to sunlight on certain seasons? | 38.5 | 45.1 | 0.001 |
| Are you fully covered during sun exposure? | 22.5 | 28.3 | 0.001 |
| Do you use sunscreen? | 3.0 | 7.9 | 0.001 |
*Percentage of all responses corresponds to “YES”, NS: non-significant.