Is this true?

Question

Native European populations require more vitamin D than native African populations

Answer 1

Hi. Vitamin D is made by sunlight contacting skin. Any being for which this is not adequate would not have survived.

Answer 2

African and European populations require the same amount of vitamin D.

African populations are exposed to more sun so they have more time to absorb the ultraviolet rays. They can get sufficient vitamin D even though their skin is darker and absorbs fewer rays in a given time.

When populations moved north out of Africa eons ago, the dark skinned people had a harder time surviving the long winters with less sunlight. Gradually, people with slightly lighter skin had better survival rates and more offspring. The offspring also had lighter skin and some of their offspring had even paler complexions and could live healthy lives even farther north.

As an aside, Afghan women who were never allowed outside their homes without a burka by the Taliban suffered vitamin D deficiencies because they got no sun.

Answer 3

Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin that is found in food and can also be made in your body after exposure to ultraviolet (UV) rays from the sun. Sunshine is a significant source of vitamin D because UV rays from sunlight trigger vitamin D synthesis in the skin.

The advantage of light skin is that it does not block sunlight as much as dark skin does.

It is a lot "sunnier" in African countries, so they don't need as much Vitamin D from the sun.

In northern europe, they have lower sun exposure, so they require more vitamin D. But they compensate for this, from getting Vitamin D from their food.

Answer 4

Actually people of color would require more vitamin D in their diet if they live in a higher latitude (closer to the poles) because their is not much sunlight. Vitamin D is produced in the skin when exposed to sunlight. Since people of color have more pigments such as melonin in their skin , the sunlight is blocked and they produce less vitamin D. However, in the equatorial regions the sunlight is very intense and a sufficient amount of vitamin D is made.

Answer 5

sun is the biggest source ov vitamin D n besides sun it can only be obtained 4rm supplements so the people who have deficiency ov vitamin D requires it more