Cent Eur J Public Health 2023, 31(1):19-24 | DOI: 10.21101/cejph.a7324

Examination of correlations between vitamin D and melatonin levels with sleep among women aged 18–49 years

Zehra İncedal Sonkaya¹, Burak Yazgan², Aslı Kurtgöz³, Aslıhan Dilara Demir⁴, Serap İncedal Irgat⁵

¹ Department of Health Care, Sabuncuoğlu Serefeddin Health Services Vocational School, Amasya University, Amasya, Turkey

² Department of Medical Services and Techniques, Sabuncuoğlu Serefeddin Health Services Vocational School, Amasya University, Amasya, Turkey

³ Department of Therapy and Rehabilitation, Sabuncuoğlu Serefeddin Health Services Vocational School, Amasya University, Amasya, Turkey

⁴ Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Amasya University, Amasya, Turkey

⁵ Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Health Sciences, Karamanoğlu Mehmetbey University, Karaman, Turkey

Objectives: Although clinical research is still going on to determine any relationship between vitamin D and sleep regulation, only few studies have identified the role of vitamin D metabolism in sleep disorders. The current study aims to examine the incidence of vitamin D deficiency/insufficiency in the sample group and its effects on sleep quality and melatonin level.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was designed. A total of 79 women aged 18-49 years who applied to the research and training hospital between 1 October and 30 November 2021 participated in the study. Data were collected using a socio-demographic questionnaire prepared by the authors and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Blood samples were taken from the participants, also, 25-OH-vitamin D3 and melatonin levels in serum samples were measured by ELISA.

Results: The participants (n = 79) were aged 29.61 ± 11.14 years. The mean total PSQI scores of the participants were calculated as 5.77 ± 2.70. We determined that 64.6% of the participants had vitamin D deficiency, 21.5% had vitamin D insufficiency, and 13.9% of the participants were vitamin D sufficient. The mean melatonin level was found to be 24.77 ± 27.77 ng/L. We determined that an increase in the melatonin levels decreases the risk of vitamin D deficiency. Besides, our findings showed a good positive correlation between serum melatonin and 25 OH vitamin D3 levels (r = 0.544, p < 0.001).

Conclusion: Our results indicate that the correction of vitamin D insufficiency can positively affect melatonin levels, therefore, it may positively contribute to the treatment of sleep disorders related to melatonin deficiency.

Keywords: vitamin D deficiency, melatonin, sleep quality, woman

Received: February 4, 2022; Revised: March 25, 2023; Accepted: March 25, 2023; Published: March 31, 2023  Show citation