https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/957302
News Release 28-Jun-2022
Black and Hispanic populations have high rates of deficiency
Peer-Reviewed Publication
University of Houston
Results from a University of Houston College of Nursing study indicate that 61% of otherwise healthy Black and Hispanic adolescents have low vitamin D levels, that drop even lower with age. The research fills a knowledge gap on groups of people who suffer from vitamin D deficiency.
“Black and Hispanic populations have a markedly high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and higher incidence and worse outcomes for cardiovascular disease, certain cancers, type 2 diabetes and renal disease, all of which have been linked to vitamin D levels,” reports Shainy Varghese, associate professor of nursing at the UH College of Nursing, in the Journal of Pediatric Health Care. Her team examined the records of 119 ethnically diverse adolescents aged 12–18 from a suburban clinic in Southeast Texas.
The benefits of vitamin D cannot be understated. It is reported to have great impacts on strengthening the immune system, preventing certain cancers, boosting your mood, lowering the risk of type 2 diabetes and more. Research also finds that among patients who are positive for COVID-19, those with low vitamin D had more severe respiratory symptoms than those with normal levels of vitamin D.
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Vitamin D can is often called the “sunshine vitamin” because the body naturally produces it in response to sunshine, but absorption is more challenging for people with darker skin tones. Melanin absorbs and blocks UV light from reaching the cells that produce vitamin D.
It can also be ingested when eating certain foods like salmon, trout, tuna, eggs and dairy products that are fortified with it. But, according to the report, as children grow older and have more autonomy, their choice of sugar-sweetened beverages may replace milk consumption, lowering their vitamin D levels further.
[Also, many adults are lactose-intolerant.]
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