New research indicates a lack of sunshine could help explain high levels of obesity. The study, published in the scientific journal Bone, showed that levels of vitamin D tend to be lower in the bodies of overweight people, and previous research has shown that insufficient vitamin D in the blood interferes with the hormone leptin, which signals to the brain when the stomach is full.
The research was carried out by Aberdeen University between 1998 and 2000, using data from 3,100 women living in northeast Scotland. Estimates were taken of how long the women had been exposed to sunlight during the previous year and the amount of vitamin D they obtained from food such as eggs and oily fish.
Researchers found that those with an average body mass index (BMI) of 34—which is above the BMI measure of clinical obesity—produced 10-percent less vitamin D than those of average weight.
“The link between low vitamin D levels and obesity is significant,” says study leader Helen Macdonald. “We think that obese people either are not getting enough sunshine, or that the vitamin D they do have is going into fat stores and is not accessible. The fact that obese people are prone to low vitamin D levels is a concern in terms of heart disease, the functioning of the immune system and other diseases such as cancer. Lifestyle is also a huge factor. Even when there is beautiful sunshine, we are concerned that people are not getting out there and enjoying it."
Macdonald adds that comparisons would be made with similar research in Surrey to establish how specific the problem is to Scotland.
Source: The Press Association
