"By Dadvi Liu, PH.D
Monday Jan 30, 2012 (foodconsumer.org) -- In some people, no matter how hard they try to get themselves exposed to the sun, they may not be able to get sufficient vitamin D, which is known to have a role in more than 100 health conditions. That is what a new study published in the January 25, 2012 issue of PLoS One suggests.
Researchers at Kyungpook National University in Daegu, Korea found evidence suggesting that exposure to certain organochrlorine (OC) pesticides may be the cause for some cases of vitamin D deficiency.
The study discovered that "among the 7 OC pesticides, p,pŒ-DDT (ƒÀ = −0.022, P<0.01), p,pŒ-DDE (ƒÀ = −0.018, P = 0.04), and ƒÀ-hexachlorocyclohexane (ƒÀ = −0.022, P = 0.02) showed significant inverse associations with serum 25(OH)D levels."
Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane(DDT) is one of the most well-known synthetic insecticides and Dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE) is a chemical compound formed by the loss of hydrogen chloride (dehydrohalogenation) from DDT, of which it is one of the more common breakdown products.
Jin-Hoon Yang and colleagues say in their report that low dose organochlorine pesticides previously have been strongly associated with various chronic disease including diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. And animal and field studies also suggest that persistent lipophilic chemicals such as OC pesticides may cause vitamin D deficiency.
For the study, the researchers exmained the association between serum OC pesticides with serum 25(OH)D in 1,275 men and women aged 20 or older in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey(NHANES) from 2003 to 2004.
Yang et al. concluded "The current study suggests that the background exposure to some OC pesticides leads to vitamin D deficiency in human."
http://www.foodconsumer.org/newsite/Safety/chemical/pesticides_vitamin_d_deficiency_0130120805.html