Relationship between Mother's Vitamin D Level and her Child's Status in a Secondary Care Hospital: An Observational Study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.6000/1929-4247.2026.15.04.2Keywords:
Vitamin D, calcium, phosphorus, vitamin D deficiency, alkaline phosphatase, serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D]Abstract
Objective: This study aimed to determine the relationships among vitamin D, calcium, phosphorus, and alkaline phosphatase levels in children (aged 0–12 years) and their mothers, and to assess the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in both groups attending a secondary care hospital in Majmaah, Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, we examined how these biochemical parameters correlate with each other to inform potential nutritional interventions for this population.
Methods: 75 mothers and children between the ages of 0 and 12 who were admitted to the King Khalid hospital in Majmaah city between February 2015 and March 2016 participated in this study. This observational, retrospective, cross-sectional, hospital-based study was conducted at the pediatric division of King Khalid Hospital in Majmaah city.
Results: The study group comprised 62.7% male and 37.3% female children. Mothers aged 20 to 40 accounted for 96% of the population, while those aged 40 and older accounted for 4%. Nearly 98.7% of mothers had serum calcium levels>2.6 mmol/L. While 84% of children had serum phosphorus levels over 1.5 mmol/L. With statistically significant p-values <0.05, vitamin D positively correlates with calcium (r = 0.327; p = 0.004) and phosphorus (r = 0.251; p = 0.030). However, it shows a negative correlation with alkaline phosphatase in children (r = -0.083; p = 0.480). 10.7% of children and 42.7% of mothers had serious vitamin D deficiency, respectively.
Conclusion: This study highlights a significant correlation between vitamin D levels and calcium and phosphorus in children and mothers, with vitamin D positively associated with these minerals. These results underscore the critical need for targeted nutritional interventions to address vitamin D deficiency and improve bone health among children and mothers in this regional population. We recommend community-level screening and supplementation programs targeting mother–child dyads, alongside food fortification policies in Saudi Arabia. Future longitudinal studies with larger sample sizes are warranted to validate the causal relationship between maternal and child vitamin D status and to guide evidence-based regional nutrition policies.
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