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X Demographics
Mendeley readers
Attention Score in Context
| Title |
Skin pigmentation, sun exposure and vitamin D levels in children of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
BMC Public Health, June 2014
|
| DOI | 10.1186/1471-2458-14-597 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Carolina Bonilla, Andrew R Ness, Andrew K Wills, Debbie A Lawlor, Sarah J Lewis, George Davey Smith |
| Abstract |
It has been hypothesised that light skin pigmentation has arisen to ensure adequate levels of vitamin D as human populations moved out of Africa and into higher latitudes. Vitamin D, which is primarily obtained through exposure to sunlight (specifically ultraviolet radiation B (UVR-B)), has been inversely associated with several complex diseases. Greater sun exposure, on the other hand, is a well-known cause of skin cancer. The potential of UVR to be beneficial for some health outcomes but detrimental for others has prompted a public health debate on how to balance the positive and negative consequences of sun exposure. In this study we aimed to determine the validity of the evolutionary hypothesis linking lighter skin with higher vitamin D concentrations in a European population. Additionally, we aimed to examine the influence of pigmentation on personal behaviour towards sunlight exposure and the effects of this behaviour on vitamin D. We combined genetic variants strongly associated with skin colour, tanning or freckling to create genetic scores for each of these phenotypes. We examined the association of the scores with pigmentary traits, sun exposure and serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) levels among children of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC, N = 661 to 5649). We found that fairer-skinned children, i.e. those with higher pigmentation score values, had higher levels of 25(OH)D (0.6 nmol/l; 95% CI 0.2, 1.0; per unit increase in skin colour score; N = 5649). These children also used more protection against the damaging effects of UVR. In this population taking protective measures against sunburn and skin cancer does not seem to remove the positive effect that having a less pigmented skin has on vitamin D production. Our findings require further replication as skin pigmentation showed only a small effect on circulating 25(OH)D. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 13 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 2 | 15% |
| United Kingdom | 1 | 8% |
| Australia | 1 | 8% |
| Unknown | 9 | 69% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Members of the public | 11 | 85% |
| Science communicators (journalists, bloggers, editors) | 2 | 15% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 149 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 1 | <1% |
| Ghana | 1 | <1% |
| Unknown | 147 | 99% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Student > Bachelor | 33 | 22% |
| Student > Master | 24 | 16% |
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 13 | 9% |
| Researcher | 11 | 7% |
| Student > Postgraduate | 10 | 7% |
| Other | 23 | 15% |
| Unknown | 35 | 23% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Medicine and Dentistry | 39 | 26% |
| Nursing and Health Professions | 14 | 9% |
| Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 13 | 9% |
| Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 8 | 5% |
| Social Sciences | 6 | 4% |
| Other | 23 | 15% |
| Unknown | 46 | 31% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 34. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 08 March 2024.
All research outputs
#1,187,559
of 25,714,183 outputs
Outputs from BMC Public Health
#1,327
of 17,781 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#11,285
of 244,312 outputs
Outputs of similar age from BMC Public Health
#26
of 289 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 25,714,183 research outputs across all sources so far. Compared to these this one has done particularly well and is in the 95th percentile: it's in the top 5% of all research outputs ever tracked by Altmetric.
So far Altmetric has tracked 17,781 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 14.5. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 92% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 244,312 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 95% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 289 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 91% of its contemporaries.