Living in a sunny climate no help for vitamin D levels

While it is well known that a majority of hip fracture patients of all ages and both sexes have insufficient or deficient levels of vitamin D, a new study presented at the 2013 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons found living in a warm, sunny climate di not improve patient vitamin D levels.

Researchers reviewed the vitamin D levels of 1,539 patients, including 448 acute hip fracture patients and 1,091 total hip or total knee replacement patients, from December 2010 to December 2011 at a major medical center in southern California.

Overall, the majority of patients age 18 and older of both sexes with hip fractures had insufficient levels of vitamin D, and those age 71 or older had significantly lower levels than the control group.

Steve: This is simply reaffirming data. We have seen numerous studies on relatively healthy individuals living in sunny climates as well. 

The premise is pretty simple. Even though you live in a sunny climate, if you do not get sun exposure for at least 15 minutes daily, five days per week, without sunscreen, your chances at being vitamin D deficient go up.

You can also help yourself by supplementing with vitamin D3, as well as getting a little bit of unencumbered sunshine!