Ask Dr Miriam

QI’m confined to my house and I feel I don’t get enough sunshine to make vitamin D in my skin. Is sitting in the sunshine in my window enough?

AVitamin D is important for the absorption of calcium from the gut which then makes its way to the bones to keep them strong and healthy. So vitamin D helps prevent osteoporosis, the thinning of the bones.

It’s manufactured in the skin when sunshine hits you and converts vitamin D to a form the body can use. It’s estimated that exposure to 20 minutes a day of sunshine during the summer months is enough to keep you going for the rest of the year. So sitting by your window in the sunshine would be sufficient. This is because vitamin D can be stored in your body fat and released slowly over time. Also eat vitamin D-rich foods such as dairy, cereals, margarine, eggs, nuts and fatty fish.