Excerpt:
Pregnant women who wear the hijab are at risk of Vitamin D deficiency, but few are asked by their GPs about how much time they spend outside, or are prescribed extra vitamins, an Auckland researcher says.
Vitamin D is made by the body when skin is exposed to sunlight, but some Muslim women keep the majority of their skin covered if they may be seen by men outside of their immediate family.
Maryam Delshad looked into the risks of Vitamin D deficiency in Afghani women during pregnancy and in new borns, in Auckland, and shared her findings last month at a symposium into migrant health issues in Auckland.