Micronutrients & recovery
Vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency are highly prevalent across all demographic groups in the Middle East, driven by cultural clothing practices and limited dietary sources, despite abundant year-long sunshine.
Living in a sunny region does not guarantee adequate Vitamin D levels if your clothing covers most of your skin and your diet lacks fortified foods or supplements. You are at high risk for deficiency regardless of the weather. Consider testing your levels and discussing supplementation with a healthcare provider, as dietary sources alone are often insufficient in this region.
Despite abundant, year-long sunshine in the Middle East, vitamin D deficiency and inadequacy is prevalent due, in large part, to traditional clothing covering most of the body and the lack of foods rich in, or fortified with, vitamin D.
Why this rating
The paper is a narrative review summarizing cross-sectional studies with varying definitions and assays, lacking large-scale RCTs.
Source
The Prevalence of Micronutrient Deficiencies and Inadequacies in the Middle East and Approaches to Interventions
Nahla Hwalla et al. · Nutrients · 2017
DOI 10.3390/nu9030229
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