On 9 April, 2018, Food Safety and Standareds Authority of India (FSSAI) launched a unique initiative which named 'Project Dhoop' to encourage schools to shift their morning asseenbly to around noon-time, mainly between 11 am to 1 pm, to ensure maximum absorption of Vitamin D, in students through natural sunlight. The move comes in the backdrop of rising incidence of Vitamin D deficiency in the country as the study have found that over 90% of boys and girls in various Indian cities deficient in Vitamin D. Despite most part of India receiving abundant sunlight all the year.
Note:- It has been launched by FSSAI along with National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) as well as North MCD Schools.
Why do we need Vitamin D and how do I we gey it?
Vitamin D helps your body absorb calcium. Calcium is play a key role to build blocks of bone. Vitamin D also has a role in your nervous, muscle and immune system.
You can get it in 3 ways:-
- through your skin
- from your diet and
- from supplements
your body forms vitamin D naturally after exposure to sunlight. But too much sunlight exposure can leed to skin aging and skin cancer, so, many people get Vitamin D from other sources.
What problems does Vitamin D deficiency cause?
Severe Vitamin D deficiency can also lead to other disease. In ciildren, it cause Rickets, Rickehts is a rare disease that causes that bones became soft and bend.
In adult, its deficiencyt leads to Osteoalacia. Osteomalacia causes weak bones, bone pain and muscle weakness.
