Almost half of Australian indoor workers suffer vitamin D deficiency: study

Nearly half of all indoor workers in Australia suffer vitamin D deficiency through the winter, according to a new Australian study revealed on Thursday.

The survey of 100 Sydney office workers, presented at the Dietitians Association of Australia conference in Adelaide on Thursday, found 42 percent were deficient in the vitamin at the end of winter while one in three had low levels over summer.

"We suspected lifestyle makes a difference to vitamin D, especially working indoors, but we hadn't expected that we'd have this much of a problem," researcher Professor Rebecca Mason from the University of Sydney , told Australian Associated Press (AAP).

While there are no short-term symptoms indicating a deficiency, a lack of vitamin D puts people at greater risk of osteoporosis and poor muscle function later in life, the study said.

The lowest levels of vitamin D were measured in people with very dark skin -- 90 percent were deficient by the end of winter.

Mason stressed the importance of getting out of the office and soaking up some sunlight during the winter months.

She recommended 10 minutes of sunshine mid-morning or afternoon every day during the summer and 30 minutes around midday during winter.

Mason admitted the sample size was small, but said it was the first Australian study to examine how vitamin D levels linked to indoors working.

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