{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,17]],"date-time":"2026-03-17T12:04:23Z","timestamp":1773749063498,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":0,"publisher":"World Health Organization Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean (WHO\/EMRO)","issue":"3","content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["East Mediterr Health J."],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,17]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>Background: The association between vitamin D deficiency and metabolic syndrome among adults in Arab countries has not been systematically synthesised.\nAim: To assess the association between vitamin D deficiency and metabolic syndrome among adults in Arab countries.\nMethods: Using guidelines from the Joanna Briggs Institute manual for evidence synthesis, meta-analysis of observational studies in epidemiology, and preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses, we reviewed studies published between January 2015 and January 2025 on vitamin D deficiency and metabolic syndrome among adults aged \u2265 18 years in Arab countries. Statistical analyses were conducted using R version 4.5.0; mean serum vitamin D concentrations were compared using unpaired t-tests, and the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency was compared using chi-square tests. Statistical significance was set at P \u2264 0.05.\nResults: Twelve studies involving 4399 participants from 6 Arab countries were analysed. Vitamin D deficiency was more prevalent among adults with metabolic syndrome and was associated with higher odds of metabolic syndrome (pooled odds ratio 1.84; 95% confidence interval 1.15\u20132.94), with substantial heterogeneity. The association remained significant after sensitivity analysis.\nConclusion: Given the high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and metabolic syndrome, there is a need for preventive strategies in the Arab countries. Well-designed interventional studies are needed to clarify causality, assess the effectiveness of vitamin D interventions and determine whether there is a threshold beyond which additional increases in vitamin D provide limited metabolic benefit.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.26719\/2026.32.3.156","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,17]],"date-time":"2026-03-17T11:17:03Z","timestamp":1773746223000},"page":"156-163","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Association between vitamin D deficiency and metabolic syndrome among adults in Arab countries"],"prefix":"10.26719","volume":"32","author":[{"given":"Waad","family":"Arnous","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Salwa","family":"Aljarayhi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Naji","family":"Aljohani","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Saudi Arabia; Obesity, Endocrine and Metabolism Center, King Fahad Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"11263","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,17]]},"container-title":["Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal"],"original-title":[],"link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/applications.emro.who.int\/EMHJ\/V32\/03\/1020-3397-2026-3203-156-163-eng.pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,17]],"date-time":"2026-03-17T11:17:03Z","timestamp":1773746223000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/applications.emro.who.int\/EMHJ\/V32\/03\/1020-3397-2026-3203-156-163-eng.pdf"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,17]]},"references-count":0,"journal-issue":{"issue":"3","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,17]]},"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,17]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.26719\/2026.32.3.156","relation":{},"ISSN":["1020-3397","1687-1634"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1020-3397","type":"print"},{"value":"1687-1634","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,17]]}}}