A full one in seven U.S. teenagers are deficient in vitamin D, according to a new analysis conducted by researchers from Cornell University, published in the journal Pediatrics and presented at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Society.
“These are alarming findings,” researcher Sandy Saintonge said. “We need to do a better job of educating the public on the importance of vitamin D, and the best ways to get it.”
Researchers looked at 2,955 U.S. residents between the ages of 12 and 19 who were included in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III, which was designed to be nationally representative. They used the new definition of vitamin D deficiency — blood levels lowe r than 20 nanograms per milliliter — adopted at the 13th Workshop Consensus for Vitamin D Nutritional Guidelines in 2007.
Source: NaturalNews – One in Seven U.S. Teens Deficient in Vitamin D, Say Researchers