Kerri-Anne Kennerley has become an advocate
for osteoporosis and Australia's vitamin D deficiency. Picture: Bradley Hunter Source:
News Limited
Holly Byrnes, The Daily Telegraph, reports
Kerri-Anne Kennerley has revealed her latest
health fight - shedding light on Australia's crippling vitamin D deficiency -
came after making the shock discovery she was herself a statistic.
The sparkling TV star, who beat breast cancer last year, has spoken
about her new vigilance about osteoporosis after her oncologist confirmed she
had dangerously low vitamin D levels and was at risk of the same bone disease
which plagues her elderly mother.
Kennerley, an active golfer and daily walker, admitted she
"genuinely thought I was doing enough to remain healthy but what I did not
realise was that my commitment to sun safety was actually preventing me from
obtaining the adequate and safe levels of UV exposure needed for overall
health.''
The Channel 7 personality, who has just returned from the US where she
filmed her third story for the current affairs program, Sunday, warned
those who don't "get a grip and get some sun'' would face the early on-set
and pain associated with brittle bones.
Raising awareness about the surprising health issue affecting the
sunburnt country, Kennerley said an extreme attitude to the "slip slop
slap'' message was putting many Australians at risk.
New research has revealed close to half of Australian women over the age
of 40 cover up or get no sun exposure - the very same group now at most risk of
vitamin D deficiency and osteoporosis.
The first national study of Australian adults over the age of 25 found
osteoporosis affects nearly one million people nationwide, while 22 per cent of
Aussie men and 39 per cent of women were vitamin D deficient.
The risks increase significantly with age, with the overweight and
surprisingly, the highly-educated (who appear welded to being overly "sun
smart'').
Kennerley said the cure was as simple as a walk in the park.
"A lot of people now walk in the morning or afternoon for a bit of
exercise, so you don't have to wear suncscreen at 8 or 9 in the morning. And
that's your daily dose. It's not hard.''
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