Table 1.
Sociodemographic characteristics and vitamin D levels among adolescents in public middle schools in Kuwait
| Characteristics | Boys, n=694 | Girls, n=722 | Total, N=1416 | |||
| Age in years, mean (SD) years | 12.56 | (0.94) | 12.41 | (0.92)* | 12.48 | (0.94) |
| 25-OH-D nmol/L, median (IQR) | 39.80 | (29.4–52.7) | 21.50 | (14.7–30.7)* | 29.70 | (19.2–44.2) |
| n | (%) | n | (%) | n | (%) | |
| Nationality (n=1416) | ||||||
| Kuwaiti | 423 | (60.95) | 658 | (91.14)* | 1081 | (76.34) |
| Non-Kuwait | 271 | (39.05) | 64 | (8.86) | 335 | (23.66) |
| Father’s education (n=1383) | ||||||
| No formal education | 9 | (1.33) | 6 | (0.85)* | 15 | (1.08) |
| Primary/Intermediate | 95 | (14.05) | 126 | (17.82) | 221 | (15.98) |
| Secondary (high school) | 157 | (23.22) | 187 | (26.45) | 344 | (24.87) |
| Diploma | 126 | (18.64) | 135 | (19.09) | 261 | (18.87) |
| University and above | 289 | (42.75) | 253 | (35.79) | 542 | (39.19) |
| Mother’s education (n=1396) | ||||||
| No formal education | 18 | (2.64) | 13 | (1.82) | 31 | (2.22) |
| Primary/Intermediate | 79 | (11.60) | 73 | (10.21) | 152 | (10.89) |
| Secondary (high school) | 140 | (20.56) | 164 | (22.94) | 304 | (21.78) |
| Diploma | 136 | (19.97) | 168 | (23.50) | 304 | (21.78) |
| University and above | 308 | (45.23) | 297 | (41.54) | 605 | (43.34) |
| Father’s income (Kuwaiti dinars) (n=1370) | ||||||
| Less than 500 | 64 | (9.61) | 27 | (3.84)* | 91 | (6.64) |
| 500–1000 | 168 | (25.23) | 136 | (19.32) | 304 | (22.19) |
| 1001–1500 | 175 | (26.28) | 246 | (34.94) | 421 | (30.73) |
| 1501–2000 | 100 | (15.02) | 119 | (16.90) | 219 | (15.99) |
| More than 2000 | 83 | (12.46) | 90 | (12.78) | 173 | (12.63) |
| Do not wish to tell | 76 | (11.41) | 86 | (12.22) | 162 | (11.82) |
| Mother’s employment status (n=1388) | ||||||
| Housewife | 267 | (39.38) | 221 | (31.13)* | 488 | (35.16) |
| Paid employment | 307 | (45.28) | 373 | (52.54) | 680 | (48.99) |
| Others | 104 | (15.34) | 116 | (16.34) | 220 | (15.85) |
| Housing (n=1397) | ||||||
| Rented flat | 301 | (44.20) | 209 | (29.19)* | 510 | (36.51) |
| Rented house | 94 | (13.80) | 69 | (9.64) | 163 | (11.67) |
| Owned flat | 17 | (2.50) | 42 | (5.87) | 59 | (4.22) |
| Owned house | 269 | (39.50) | 396 | (55.31) | 665 | (47.60) |
All %s are column percentages.
*P<0.05, that is, significant difference between boys and girls at the 5% level of significance.
25-OH-D, 25-hydroxyvitamin D.