Vitamin D
Americans’ Vitamin D Deficiency
“If you live in the north and especially in the winter months, you’re not gonna get enough sun exposure.”
—Dr. Mehmet Oz on Good Morning America
According to Harvard researchers, about 60 percent of Americans don’t get enough vitamin D. And doctors estimate that the worldwide figure includes more than one billion people. Though certain segments of the population (pregnant woman, infants, elderly, etc.) experience an increased risk, researchers from the Food and Drug Administration report high incidences of vitamin D insufficiency in almost all populations. Read more about vitamin D in this post on the Newsweek website.
Limits of Vitamin D in Food
“Sun exposure is perhaps the most important source of vitamin D4.”
—National Institutes of Health
Vitamin D isn’t like other vitamins that you can easily ingest as part of your diet. It is best absorbed through the skin from exposure to UV light. In order to get the amount of vitamin D produced during 20 minutes of sun exposure or 5-7 minutes in a tanning booth, you would need to eat more than 100 eggs. Even foods with added vitamin D, like milk, don’t come close to providing the necessary amount.
Roadblocks to Vitamin D
Roadblocks to adequate sun exposure are everywhere:
- Geography (Cities in latitudes above 37 degrees get less UV light.)
- Fashion (Robes, hats, or clothing with lots of layers keep light from reaching the skin.)
- Work (Late night shifts or very dark environments keep employees from the sun.)
- Cosmetics (Excessive sunscreen or makeup with SPF 15 and higher prevents all vitamin D production.)
- Ethnicity (Darker pigments inhibit the body’s ability to naturally produce vitamin D.)
All of these factors ensure that individuals are unlikely to obtain much vitamin D from sunlight.