Rising Cases Of Vitamin D Deficiency Causing Severe Bone, Muscle Problems; Tips To Overcome
Rising Cases Of Vitamin D Deficiency Causing Severe Bone, Muscle Problems; Tips To Overcome
Vitamin D is said to be among the most important nutrients your body needs for optimal working. A deficiency of this vitamin can cause severe issues with your bones and muscles.
Even though experts say it most commonly affects people over the age of 65 and those who have darker skin, anyone can be severely affected.
With rising temperatures, doctors say they are observing a surge in individuals with vitamin D deficiency and skin allergies. This concern has prompted extreme caution among medical professionals, including orthopedics, dermatologists, and oncologists, who are now hesitant to recommend sun exposure.
Doctors say more patients are approaching with the symptoms of extremely low vitamin D and are being advised to increase their sun exposure to at least just 5-10 minutes a day.
Many are also being prescribed supplements.
Why is vitamin D deficiency increasing?
According to studies statistics from Tata 1mg Labs, nearly 76 per cent of the Indian population suffers from vitamin D deficiency. 1
Also known as the sunshine vitamin, it is a vital nutrient that regulates the amount of calcium and phosphate in the body.
With chronic or severe deficiency, a decline in calcium and phosphorus absorption by your intestines can cause hypocalcemia or low calcium levels in your blood, leading to secondary hyperparathyroidism.
This can further result in osteomalacia or soft bones resulting in rickets in both children and adults.
Doctors say the best time to soak in the sun is before 8 am and between 3.30 pm and 5 pm when the heat waves are not harsh. However, despite being vitamin D deficient, most people in India are not able to sit in the sun due to allergies. 2
Experts also blame changing food habits and an indoor lifestyle with inadequate exposure to sunlight which has led to a drastic increase in cases of vitamin D deficiency.
According to experts, the best way to take care of that is to use a good SPF sunscreen lotion.
Signs and symptoms of vitamin D deficiency
A few signs and symptoms of vitamin D deficiency causes:
Bent bones
Muscle weakness and cramps
Pain in bones
Deformities in joints.
Fatigue
Severe mood changes leading to depression
How do you get vitamin D naturally?
You can get vitamin D in a variety of ways, including:
Sun exposure on your skin
Through the food you eat
Through nutritional supplements
Even though the amount of vitamin D you need daily depends on your age, the average daily recommended amount is 15 micrograms or 600 International Units for anyone between the ages of 1 year to 70 years.
Foods that are loaded with vitamin D include:
Fatty fish like salmon, tuna, trout, mackerel, and sardines
Mushrooms
Egg yolks
Cod liver oil
Fortified milk
Breakfast cereals
Orange juice
Dairy products like yogurt