It’s no secret that there’s some competitive rivalry between us and the Aussies – but one thing we can’t match is their annual level of sunshine! Some areas of Australia boast a lovely and warm 250 days of sunshine every year; the UK’s average of less than half that amount is just no contest. So, apart from a bit of fun trivia what does this mean for our health?  With more sunshine comes accelerated vitamin D production. It’s safe to say that the Aussies are at a serious advantage when it comes to opportunities to stock up on vitamin D.

However, a new article published in the Medical Journal of Australia has highlighted epidemic levels of deficiency across the board. Despite their abundance of sunshine, up to 58% of Australians have been found to be deficient in vitamin D. Experts have now recommended that more Australians should be supplementing with the nutrient as an easy and cost-effective way to maximize levels and avoid deficiency. Being proactive with supplementation has been suggested as a more effective way to increase levels on a population scale than more widespread testing for deficiency.

Carl Gibson, chief executive of Complementary Medicines Australia commented,

“It is no longer acceptable to assume that Australians receive adequate vitamin D from casual exposure to sunlight. A responsible approach is to acknowledge that a large proportion of the population is vitamin D deficient and not just those at high risk. This is where vitamin D fortified foods and supplements come into the disease prevention equation.”

So the message is loud and clear. Vitamin D deficiency is still a big problem, even if you are surrounded by sunshine most of the time. Supplementing with vitamin D is easy and effective. Make sure you choose a supplement that contains vitamin D as cholecalciferol (D3) with added vitamin K2 as these two nutrients work together and you need both in adequate amounts for optimal health.

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