African American women aren’t getting the vitamin D they need because they aren’t getting enough sunlight, according to an article published this week about a new study in the journal Breast Cancer Research.

“Vitamin D is made through sun exposure. So, try to meet the sun often,” says an article in Technorati.com — describing the study.

“Researchers have found that genetic variations in the Vitamin D receptor and the enzyme, CYP24A1, which is responsible for deactivation of vitamin D, are linked to the increased chances of breast cancer in African American women. They have reported that vitamin D and CYP24A1 are significantly different in American women of African ancestry than in American women of European ancestry (EA),” Technorati.com writes. “They worked on nearly 1800 AA and EA women and found that AA women had serious vitamin D deficiency than EAs. The lowest level has been found in women with highest African ancestry. Most important reason of this is the change in skin pigmentation.”

To read the article click here.

To look at the study in Breast Cancer Research click here.