Vitamin D status in Faroese adults and its association with inflammatory bowel diseases - a cross-sectional study from the FarGen 2 project

Vitamin D is vital for physiological functions and is obtained primarily through sunlight and a few dietary sources. With limited sunlight exposure, the Faroe Islands face challenges in maintaining sufficient levels of vitamin D, while the Faroese population has documented the highest incidence and...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Randi Næss Lisberg, Kári Rubek Nielsen, Leivur Nattestad Lydersen, Katrin Didriksen Apol, Jóngerð Midjord, Olivia Gray, Melissa Hendershott, Marin Strøm, Noomi Oddmarsdóttir Gregersen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2025-12-01
Series:International Journal of Circumpolar Health
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/22423982.2025.2519803
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849685584989126656
author Randi Næss Lisberg
Kári Rubek Nielsen
Leivur Nattestad Lydersen
Katrin Didriksen Apol
Jóngerð Midjord
Olivia Gray
Melissa Hendershott
Marin Strøm
Noomi Oddmarsdóttir Gregersen
author_facet Randi Næss Lisberg
Kári Rubek Nielsen
Leivur Nattestad Lydersen
Katrin Didriksen Apol
Jóngerð Midjord
Olivia Gray
Melissa Hendershott
Marin Strøm
Noomi Oddmarsdóttir Gregersen
author_sort Randi Næss Lisberg
collection DOAJ
description Vitamin D is vital for physiological functions and is obtained primarily through sunlight and a few dietary sources. With limited sunlight exposure, the Faroe Islands face challenges in maintaining sufficient levels of vitamin D, while the Faroese population has documented the highest incidence and prevalence of inflammatory bowel disease worldwide. This study investigates vitamin D status among Faroese adults and its association with inflammatory bowel disease as well as other self-reported diseases in a subset of the Faroe Genome Project 2. Cross-sectional study including 1,748 participants aged 18–86 years. Among participants, 74.3% maintained sufficient vitamin D levels, while 25.7% were insufficient (<50 nmol/l). Individuals with conditions like hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and inflammatory bowel disease showed significantly higher rates of vitamin D sufficiency compared to those without these conditions. Notably, 83% of participants with inflammatory bowel disease had sufficient vitamin D. Our data reveal higher vitamin D levels compared to previous studies in the Faroe Islands. Furthermore, contrary to our hypothesis, our data shows higher vitamin D levels for participants reporting diseases including inflammatory bowel disease, indicating patients with inflammatory bowel disease can attain high vitamin D levels, which is of considerable clinical importance.
format Article
id doaj-art-39a3c86e2ba64af8a7896e6772d0e7aa
institution DOAJ
issn 2242-3982
language English
publishDate 2025-12-01
publisher Taylor & Francis Group
record_format Article
series International Journal of Circumpolar Health
spelling doaj-art-39a3c86e2ba64af8a7896e6772d0e7aa2025-08-20T03:23:06ZengTaylor & Francis GroupInternational Journal of Circumpolar Health2242-39822025-12-0184110.1080/22423982.2025.2519803Vitamin D status in Faroese adults and its association with inflammatory bowel diseases - a cross-sectional study from the FarGen 2 projectRandi Næss Lisberg0Kári Rubek Nielsen1Leivur Nattestad Lydersen2Katrin Didriksen Apol3Jóngerð Midjord4Olivia Gray5Melissa Hendershott6Marin Strøm7Noomi Oddmarsdóttir Gregersen8Faculty of Health Science, University of the Faroe Islands, Tórshavn, Faroe IslandsMedical Department, National Hospital of the Faroe Islands, Tórshavn, Faroe IslandsFarGen, Department of Research, National Hospital, Tórshavn, Faroe IslandsFarGen, Department of Research, National Hospital, Tórshavn, Faroe IslandsMedical Department, National Hospital of the Faroe Islands, Tórshavn, Faroe IslandsVariant Bio, Inc, Seattle, WA, USAVariant Bio, Inc, Seattle, WA, USAFaculty of Health Science, University of the Faroe Islands, Tórshavn, Faroe IslandsFarGen, Department of Research, National Hospital, Tórshavn, Faroe IslandsVitamin D is vital for physiological functions and is obtained primarily through sunlight and a few dietary sources. With limited sunlight exposure, the Faroe Islands face challenges in maintaining sufficient levels of vitamin D, while the Faroese population has documented the highest incidence and prevalence of inflammatory bowel disease worldwide. This study investigates vitamin D status among Faroese adults and its association with inflammatory bowel disease as well as other self-reported diseases in a subset of the Faroe Genome Project 2. Cross-sectional study including 1,748 participants aged 18–86 years. Among participants, 74.3% maintained sufficient vitamin D levels, while 25.7% were insufficient (<50 nmol/l). Individuals with conditions like hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and inflammatory bowel disease showed significantly higher rates of vitamin D sufficiency compared to those without these conditions. Notably, 83% of participants with inflammatory bowel disease had sufficient vitamin D. Our data reveal higher vitamin D levels compared to previous studies in the Faroe Islands. Furthermore, contrary to our hypothesis, our data shows higher vitamin D levels for participants reporting diseases including inflammatory bowel disease, indicating patients with inflammatory bowel disease can attain high vitamin D levels, which is of considerable clinical importance.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/22423982.2025.2519803Vitamin DFarGenFaroe Islandsinflammatory bowel diseasecross-sectional study
spellingShingle Randi Næss Lisberg
Kári Rubek Nielsen
Leivur Nattestad Lydersen
Katrin Didriksen Apol
Jóngerð Midjord
Olivia Gray
Melissa Hendershott
Marin Strøm
Noomi Oddmarsdóttir Gregersen
Vitamin D status in Faroese adults and its association with inflammatory bowel diseases - a cross-sectional study from the FarGen 2 project
International Journal of Circumpolar Health
Vitamin D
FarGen
Faroe Islands
inflammatory bowel disease
cross-sectional study
title Vitamin D status in Faroese adults and its association with inflammatory bowel diseases - a cross-sectional study from the FarGen 2 project
title_full Vitamin D status in Faroese adults and its association with inflammatory bowel diseases - a cross-sectional study from the FarGen 2 project
title_fullStr Vitamin D status in Faroese adults and its association with inflammatory bowel diseases - a cross-sectional study from the FarGen 2 project
title_full_unstemmed Vitamin D status in Faroese adults and its association with inflammatory bowel diseases - a cross-sectional study from the FarGen 2 project
title_short Vitamin D status in Faroese adults and its association with inflammatory bowel diseases - a cross-sectional study from the FarGen 2 project
title_sort vitamin d status in faroese adults and its association with inflammatory bowel diseases a cross sectional study from the fargen 2 project
topic Vitamin D
FarGen
Faroe Islands
inflammatory bowel disease
cross-sectional study
url https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/22423982.2025.2519803
work_keys_str_mv AT randinæsslisberg vitamindstatusinfaroeseadultsanditsassociationwithinflammatoryboweldiseasesacrosssectionalstudyfromthefargen2project
AT karirubeknielsen vitamindstatusinfaroeseadultsanditsassociationwithinflammatoryboweldiseasesacrosssectionalstudyfromthefargen2project
AT leivurnattestadlydersen vitamindstatusinfaroeseadultsanditsassociationwithinflammatoryboweldiseasesacrosssectionalstudyfromthefargen2project
AT katrindidriksenapol vitamindstatusinfaroeseadultsanditsassociationwithinflammatoryboweldiseasesacrosssectionalstudyfromthefargen2project
AT jongerðmidjord vitamindstatusinfaroeseadultsanditsassociationwithinflammatoryboweldiseasesacrosssectionalstudyfromthefargen2project
AT oliviagray vitamindstatusinfaroeseadultsanditsassociationwithinflammatoryboweldiseasesacrosssectionalstudyfromthefargen2project
AT melissahendershott vitamindstatusinfaroeseadultsanditsassociationwithinflammatoryboweldiseasesacrosssectionalstudyfromthefargen2project
AT marinstrøm vitamindstatusinfaroeseadultsanditsassociationwithinflammatoryboweldiseasesacrosssectionalstudyfromthefargen2project
AT noomioddmarsdottirgregersen vitamindstatusinfaroeseadultsanditsassociationwithinflammatoryboweldiseasesacrosssectionalstudyfromthefargen2project