Go Outside and Prevent Vitamin D Deficiency

It’s big news. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) linked a lack of vitamin D in youth to heart disease, diabetes and other ailments. According to the CDC, nine percent of those ages 1 through 21 — about 7.6 million children, adolescents and young adults — have Vitamin D levels so low they could be considered deficient, while an additional 61 percent — 50.8 million — have higher levels, but still low enough to be insufficient, according to an analysis of federal data.

What is the cause? Among other things researchers referenced the amount of time children spend indoors watching TV and playing video games. If weight issues weren’t reason enough to boot your kids out the door to play, now there is this on top of it.

More research is planned to understand the role of vitamin D plays in children’s health. If nothing else, it is a reminder that outdoor play is essential for a healthy childhood. Let’s all work together to prevent vitamin D deficiency by making the commitment to take the kids outside every day! Following this link to learn more about the statistics provided by the CDC and learn more about the bebefits of spending time outdoors,

Here are some links to some other posts of mine that offer ideas for outdoor activities:
1. Summer days
2. Flower power
3. Make mud pies
4. Hiking

Please add your favorite outside activities to my comments. Once I have a good number of ideas I would like to develop a survey that will poll my readers on what the 10 top outdoor activities are for children. Thanks in advance for your input!