Descrption:
Half of all Britons suffer from a mild vitamin D deficiency a leading European scientist told a conference in Glasgow, Scotland, last week.
As a result, said Roger Bouillon from Leuven University in Belgium, they faced increased risk of fractures and other diseases in later life including various cancers. The only solution, he added, was regular supplementation.
Speaking at the European Congress of Endocrinology, Bouillon said “a lack of sunshine and low dietary uptake of vitamin D lay behind this growing problem.”
He said that more large-scale studies were needed to see if larger intakes of vitamin D would translate into reductions in disease around the world.
Latest studies suggest that more than a billion people of all ages around the world — particularly in areas such as northern Europe — need to increase their vitamin D intake. Teenage girls are thought to be the most vulnerable group, with up to 85% suffering from a mild deficiency during winter months.
Seperately, Researchers reviewed 63 other studies and found that the vitamin could reduce the chances of developing breast, ovarian and colon cancer, as well as other forms.
Charities cautiously welcomed the University of California study but warned too much vitamin D could harm the kidneys and liver.
The research, done at the University of California in San Diego, looked at the relationship between blood levels of vitamin D and cancer risk.
Survival rates for Afro-Caribbean people with breast, colon, prostate and ovarian cancers are worse than for white people, possibly because dark skins are not as good at making vitamin D, the researchers said.
The papers reviewed, published worldwide between 1966 and 2004, included 30 investigations of colon cancer, 13 of breast cancer, 26 of prostate cancer and seven of ovarian cancer.
Scientists said analysis showed that, for at least some cancers, the vitamin D factor could not be ignored.
Sources of Vitamin D include are eggs, milk and cod liver oil.
Solgar Vitamins sell a specially formulated Vitamin D product that is available from Boots Herbal Storesas well as online at www.solgar.co.uk |