Black Americans have lower levels of serum 25(OH)D but superior bone health compared to white Americans. However, according to a recent study, black Americans should have the same exposure to vitamin D as white Americans. Researchers sought to determine whether vitamin D supplementation in elderly black women prevents bone loss and whether they should be screened for vitamin D deficiency. 260 healthy black American women, aged ≥60 years, were recruited to take part in a 2-arm, double‐dummy, 3-year randomized controlled trial of vitamin D₃ vs placebo. Vitamin D₃ dose was adjusted to maintain serum 25(OH)D >75 nmol/L. Bone mineral density (BMD) and serum were measured for parathyroid hormone (PTH), C‐terminal crosslink telopeptide (CTX), and bone specific alkaline phosphatase (BSAP) every 6 months. Baseline serum 25(OH)D3 was 54.8 ± 16.8 nmol/L. Researchers found:

• For all BMD measurements, except for total body and spine, there was a statistically significant negative effect of time.
• An equivalency analysis showed that the treatment group was equivalent to the control group.
• Serum PTH and BSAP declined, with a greater decline of PTH in the treatment group.