By Gabe Mirkin, M.D.
For many years we have been advised to wear sunscreen to help prevent
skin cancer, but what happens if you don’t get any sun at all? Scientists don’t know exactly how much sunlight you need for good health, but one report from Turkey showed that women who wear veils have lower blood levels of vitamin D and therefore are at increased risk for suffering osteoporosis (Journal of Women’s Health & Gender-Based Medicine, Volume 10, 2001).
Food sources of vitamin D include egg yolks, liver, and fish oils from sardines, herring, salmon and other fatty fish. The vast majority of people in all cultures do not eat enough of these foods to meet their requirements for vitamin D, so they have to depend on sunlight. You get enough vitamin D to meet your requirements by exposing a few inches of skin to sunlight for less than one half hour a day. Veiled women rarely expose any part of their bodies to sunlight, so they have low blood levels of vitamin D that increase their risk for osteoporosis.
Fortified milk is not a particularly good source of vitamin D because the calcium uses up vitamin D, so you may need more than you get in the milk to compensate.
For many years we have been advised to wear sunscreen to help prevent
skin cancer, but what happens if you don’t get any sun at all? Scientists don’t know exactly how much sunlight you need for good health, but one report from Turkey showed that women who wear veils have lower blood levels of vitamin D and therefore are at increased risk for suffering osteoporosis (Journal of Women’s Health & Gender-Based Medicine, Volume 10, 2001).
Food sources of vitamin D include egg yolks, liver, and fish oils from sardines, herring, salmon and other fatty fish. The vast majority of people in all cultures do not eat enough of these foods to meet their requirements for vitamin D, so they have to depend on sunlight. You get enough vitamin D to meet your requirements by exposing a few inches of skin to sunlight for less than one half hour a day. Veiled women rarely expose any part of their bodies to sunlight, so they have low blood levels of vitamin D that increase their risk for osteoporosis.
Fortified milk is not a particularly good source of vitamin D because the calcium uses up vitamin D, so you may need more than you get in the milk to compensate.
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