Although we have many places here in Manchester where we can feel like we’re on holiday, a recent study by Get More Vits has revealed that Greater Manchester residents are the most vitamin D deficient… meaning we’re most in need of a sunny holiday!
Come the early part of the year our stores of vitamin D are depleted from those cold and wet winter months, and with one in six adults not getting the required level of vitamin D according to government statistics, this study is really needed for us poor, undernourished northerners.
Using historic Met Office data, Get More Vits analysed 30 years of British weather to break down which towns and regions are getting the most sunlight hours, rainfall, days of rain and the best maximum temperature to figure out which is most in need of a week in the sun.
Of course, Greater Manchester came in at number one for the highest rainfall and rainy days in the UK, proving that our reputation for it always raining isn’t entirely unjustified. In fact, all 10 of the top UK places in need of vitamin D turned out to be in the North of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, which may not be surprising, but is mildly depressing.
As you can guess, the top 10 places in the UK to get that much-needed vitamin D were all in the South, ranging from Worcester to Southend-on-Sea. The study shows that in January, Greater Manchester averages around 32 hours of sunlight, while in Folkestone, Bognor Regis and Hastings, hours of sunlight are above 70… the North-South divide has never been more prevalent!
It’s recommended that people get between 10mcg and 20mcg of vitamin D per day depending on their age, but a variety of factors can be influential on how much we do receive. Becky Graham, resident nutritionist at Get More Vits, said: “every one of us needs vitamin D but vegans and vegetarians, pregnant and breastfeeding women, breast fed infants and young children, older people, people with dark skin or who cover their skin, those with obesity, and people with low levels of magnesium are at all an increased risk of low vitamin D”.
And it seems us lot in the North are stuffed! Let’s all charter a coach to the South coast.