Adiposity may confound the association between vitamin D and disease risk - a lifecourse Mendelian randomization study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Vitamin D supplements are widely prescribed to help reduce disease risk. However, this strategy is based on findings using conventional epidemiological methods which are prone to confounding and reverse causation.

Methods

In this short report, we leveraged genetic variants which differentially influence body size during childhood and adulthood within a multivariable Mendelian randomization (MR) framework, allowing us to separate the genetically predicted effects of adiposity at these two timepoints in the lifecourse.

Results

Using data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), there was strong evidence that higher childhood body size has a direct effect on lower vitamin D levels in early life (mean age: 9.9 years, range = 8.9-11.5 y

SUBMITTER: Richardson TG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9359699 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature