Sunscreens are not the only cause of vitamin D deficiency
Genes and diet get the blame as well as lack of sun
EU research projects have concluded that sunscreens are not the only culprit for vitamin D deficiency.
The EU-funded ENGAGE, GEFOS, TREAT-OA and GENOMEUTWIN projects assessed vitamin D levels of 34,000 people of European descent. Researchers found subjects with certain gene structures were two and a half times more likely to have low vitamin D concentrations than control groups. A concluding paper says this “could assist identification of a subgroup of the white population who are most at risk of vitamin D insufficiency and who may need… supplementation”.