Chandigarh has a vitamin D deficiency of 76%

-Jasmeet Singh

Chandigarh / January 27, 2023 :According to recent tests conducted by Tata 1mg Labs across 27 Indian cities, nearly 76% of the Indian population suffers from vitamin D deficiency.

Overall, 79% of men had lower-than-desired levels of vitamin D in their bodies, compared to 75% of women.

Delhi-NCR (72%) had the lowest incidence of vitamin D deficiency among all the cities studied, followed by Vadodara (89%) and Surat (88%).

An analysis of Tata 1mg data found that younger people were much more likely to be affected by Vitamin D deficiency than the national average. Its prevalence was highest in individuals under 25 years old (84%), followed by those 25 to 40 years old (81%).

All-India data on Vitamin D levels based on analysis of 2.2 lakh samples between March-August 2022:

City-wise incidence of vitamin-D deficiency across 27 cities in India

A deficiency of Vitamin D has been linked to health disorders such as prostate cancer, depression, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and rickets.

“Changing food habits and an indoor lifestyle with inadequate sunlight exposure have contributed to a drastic increase in vitamin D deficiency,” said Dr Rajeev Sharma, Tata 1mg VP, Medical Affairs. Young adults have a much higher prevalence of vitamin D deficiency due to lower consumption of foods containing vitamin D, like fortified cereals and oily fish.

“Vitamin D levels should be regularly tested in patients with obesity, mal-absorption syndrome, softening of the bones (osteomalacia), or who are receiving treatment for tuberculosis,” said Dr Prashant Nag, Clinical Head of Tata 1mg Labs. In addition to regular full-body checkups, Vitamin D levels can also be checked once a year or every six months.