Table 3.
Association of vitamin D knowledge, attitudes and practices with vitamin D testing
| Variables | N (%) | P value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Never tested | Ever tested | ||
| Related to Knowledge about Vitamin D | |||
| Knowledge about food sources | .0433 | ||
| Only correct | 27 (8.5) | 18 (15.1) | |
| Incorrect with/without correct | 290 (91.5) | 101 (84.9) | |
| Missing: 62 | |||
| Knowledge about health benefits | <.0001 | ||
| Bone benefits +/− other benefits | 227 (72.3) | 76 (63.9) | |
| Other benefits only | 31 (9.9) | 38 (31.9) | |
| Don’t know | 56 (17.8) | 5 (4.2) | |
| Missing: 65 | |||
| Knowledge about factors affecting Vitamin D | <.0001 | ||
| Sun exposure and UV index with/without other factors | 165 (52.7) | 45 (39.5) | |
| Only other factors | 76 (24.3) | 60 (52.6) | |
| Don’t know | 72 (23.0) | 9 (7.9) | |
| Missing: 71 | |||
| Related to Attitudes towards Vitamin D | |||
| Concerned current vitamin D levels may be too low | .168 | ||
| Agree/strongly agree | 118 (41.2) | 58 (52.3) | |
| Neutral | 113 (40.2) | 35 (31.5) | |
| Disagree/strongly disagree | 50 (17.8) | 18 (16.2) | |
| Missing: 113 | |||
| From a health perspective, it is important to get some sun exposure every day | .981 | ||
| Agree/strongly agree | 231 (77.3) | 84 (76.4) | |
| Neutral | 50 (16.7) | 19 (17.3) | |
| Disagree/strongly disagree | 18 (6.0) | 7 (6.4) | |
| Missing: 96 | |||
| Related to Practices towards Vitamin D | |||
| Ever take supplements or multivitamin containing vitamin D | <.0001 | ||
| No | 203 (71.7) | 31 (26.3) | |
| Yes | 80 (28.3) | 87 (73.7) | |
| Missing: 104 | |||
| Vitamin D dose of supplement | .0001 | ||
| < 1000 IU | 22 (27.5) | 49 (56.3) | |
| 1000 IU and over | 4 (5.0) | 8 (9.2) | |
| Don’t know | 54 (67.5) | 30 (34.5) | |
| Missing: 338 | |||
| Motivation for starting to take vitamin D | .03 | ||
| A doctor or health professional recommended | 34 (42.5) | 33 (37.9) | |
| A friend or family member recommended | 13 (16.3) | 17 (19.5) | |
| Read about vitamin D on the internet or in a book/magazine | 11 (13.8) | 25 (28.7) | |
| Someone else in the family is taking it | 22 (27.5) | 12 (13.8) | |
| Missing: 338 | |||
| Primary reason for not taking vitamin D | .0005 | ||
| Never thought about it | 143 (70.4) | 13 (41.9) | |
| Feel that get enough vitamin D from my diet | 16 (7.9) | 10 (32.3) | |
| Feel that get enough vitamin D from sun | 22 (10.8) | 4 (12.9) | |
| Prefer not to take any supplements/vitamins | 22 (10.8) | 4 (12.9) | |
| Missing: 271 | |||
| Time spent outdoors on a typical workday | .4 | ||
| 15 min or less | 47 (14.7) | 24 (19.8) | |
| 16 min - < 1 h | 141 (44.1) | 48 (39.7) | |
| 1 h or more | 132 (41.3) | 49 (40.5) | |
| Missing: 64 | |||
| Time spent outdoors on a typical weekend day | .85 | ||
| 15 min or less | 80 (24.8) | 31 (25.6) | |
| 16 min - < 1 h | 129 (40.1) | 51 (42.2) | |
| 1 h or more | 113 (35.1) | 39 (32.2) | |
| Missing: 62 | |||
| Sunscreen use | <.0001 | ||
| No | 201 (62.2) | 43 (35.5) | |
| Yes | 122 (37.8) | 78 (64.5) | |
| Missing: 61 | |||