Despite abundant sunshine, vitamin D deficiency is remarkably common across India, affecting children, teenagers, and adults alike due to indoor lifestyles, lack of UVB exposure, and poor dietary intake. This crucial nutrient is essential for calcium absorption and maintaining strong bones, making awareness of sensible sun exposure, fortified foods, and medical testing vital for long-term orthopaedic health.

Despite abundant sunshine, vitamin D deficiency is remarkably common across India, affecting children, teenagers, and adults alike due to indoor lifestyles, lack of UVB exposure, and poor dietary intake. This crucial nutrient is essential for calcium absorption and maintaining strong bones, making awareness of sensible sun exposure, fortified foods, and medical testing vital for long-term orthopaedic health.

Despite abundant sunshine, vitamin D deficiency is remarkably common across India, affecting children, teenagers, and adults alike due to indoor lifestyles, lack of UVB exposure, and poor dietary intake. This crucial nutrient is essential for calcium absorption and maintaining strong bones, making awareness of sensible sun exposure, fortified foods, and medical testing vital for long-term orthopaedic health.

India gets plenty of sunshine year-round, yet vitamin D deficiency remains common. Orthopaedic specialists pay close attention to this, because vitamin D keeps bones strong, supports muscles and helps the body absorb calcium. So the real question isn’t whether India has enough sun. It’s why so many people still don’t get enough vitamin D.

A widespread deficiency across age groups

Metropolis Healthcare looked at more than 11.6 lakh tests done between January 2025 and May 2026. Close to seven in ten of the people tested were either deficient in vitamin D or below the recommended level.

It isn’t only older adults who are affected, which is what makes this worrying. Children and teenagers show up too, and adolescents have the highest rate of deficiency. Long hours indoors, little time outside, and a poor diet could all be behind it. Living in a sunny country clearly doesn’t mean your body is making enough vitamin D.

Why sunshine is not always enough

The skin makes vitamin D when it is exposed to ultraviolet B (UVB) rays from the sun. How much it makes depends on the time of day, skin colour, clothing, the season and how long a person stays out.

Daily life has changed, and regular time in the sun has become rare for many people. They leave home early, work all day indoors, and get back after dark. Children spend their free time on screens instead of playing outside. Air pollution and clothing that covers most of the skin cut down the exposure even further.

Diet matters as well. Very few foods contain vitamin D naturally, so people who eat only a limited range of foods find it hard to get enough from food alone.

Why Vitamin D matters for bone health

For bones, vitamin D is essential because it helps the body absorb calcium, and calcium is what makes bones strong. If vitamin D stays low for a long time, bones can turn weak or may not develop properly.

In children, severe deficiency can lead to rickets, which interferes with how bones grow. In adults, it can cause osteomalacia, where the bones soften. That can mean bone pain and muscle weakness, and when the muscles are weak, older adults are also more likely to fall.

Getting enough vitamin D counts most in childhood and the teenage years, while the bones are still growing. Even so, bones need looking after through adult life too, with enough calcium, a balanced diet and regular physical activity.

Can early morning sunlight help?

Early morning sunlight is often suggested as part of a healthy routine. Being outdoors encourages physical activity and helps regulate the body’s sleep-wake cycle. For vitamin D specifically, though, very early morning sun may not do much.

The skin needs UVB rays to make vitamin D, and these tend to be stronger later in the morning and around midday than at dawn. The season, the location and the weather change how strong they are.

Being outdoors regularly is good for you, but there is no one length of sun exposure that suits everyone. The aim is to get sensible sunlight while still protecting yourself from sunburn and too much ultraviolet radiation. If you’re worried about low vitamin D, talk to a doctor instead of relying on sunlight alone.

The role of diet, testing and medical advice

Food can help fill the gap. Fortified milk and other fortified foods, eggs and oily fish are some of the dietary sources of vitamin D. Vegetarians can choose fortified dairy products and other suitable fortified foods. Sometimes supplements are needed, especially when a deficiency has been confirmed, or there are particular risk factors.

Don’t ignore bone pain that doesn’t go away, muscle weakness or other worrying symptoms. A doctor may advise a blood test to check vitamin D levels when needed. Supplements should only be taken under medical guidance, because too high a dose can cause a harmful build-up of calcium in the body.

Making bone health a priority

India’s vitamin D problem shows that sunshine alone can’t guarantee good health. Daily habits, food choices and each person’s own health needs all affect whether the body gets enough of this nutrient.

From an orthopaedic point of view, looking after bones should start long before any problem becomes visible. Letting children play outdoors, making time for regular exercise, eating a balanced diet and seeing a doctor when needed can all make a real difference. The goal isn’t simply more sunshine. It’s knowing how to use it sensibly alongside good nutrition and proper healthcare.

Dr Varsha Birla is the regional quality head at Metropolis Healthcare Ltd.

 

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of THE WEEK. 

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