New research: Somali immigrants in Sweden suffering from severe vitamin D deficiency

[MARAQ DIGAAG]

When geeljire bedouins wanted to make caruur it was considered a spiritual , physical and cultural excercize . The geeljire would seclude himself for several days , in the process drinking a plethora of milk and eating meat , so as to ready himself for the great endeavour ahead .

The point I am making is that our eating habits largely reflect our spiritual and social condition . To return to our natural equilibrium of health , we must study our genetics and tune into the diets of our ancestors , as well as utilising modern technology .

 

[Saar]

Somali immigrants in Sweden suffering from severe vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy


New research out of Sweden has found that pregnant Somali women are suffering from severe vitamin D deficiency, with one-third of the women having undetectable vitamin D levels.

Past reports have speculated that Somali women living in Sweden are deficient in vitamin D, perhaps severely deficient. Despite this speculation, there remains little data in public literature on the vitamin D levels of these immigrants.

Severe vitamin D deficiency can lead to osteomalacia and muscle weakness. Osteomalacia is the adult form of rickets, where due to vitamin D and/or calcium deficiency, the bones become soft and fragile. People with osteomalacia often have difficulties climbing stairs and getting up from the squatting position.

Furthermore, researchers speculate that vitamin D deficiency may lead to birth complications and conditions in offspring, although more research is needed to say for sure.

In the present study, researchers from Uppsala University looked at 123 women from a local antenatal clinic, 71 of which were native Swedes, 52 of which had emigrated from Somalia (defined as having been born in Somalia).

The researchers found that Swedish women had higher vitamin D levels, with mean levels of 19.8 ng/ml.

In stark contrast, a mean level could not be calculated in the Somali group because 35% of the women had undetectable levels, meaning that their levels were less than 4 ng/ml. Overall, ninety percent of the Somali women had severe vitamin D deficiency with levels lower than 10 ng/ml. In comparison, only 10% of Swedish women had severe deficiency.

When the researchers looked at muscle strength, they found that the Swedish women were much stronger and able to do basic movements compared to the Somali women. Somali women had weaker grip strength and weaker leg performance. Seventy-three percent of women were unable to squat, 29% were unable to stand on one leg and 21% could not lift their hips. Grip strength strongly correlated with 25(OH)D levels, the lower your level, the worse your grip strength.

“Many of the Somali women in this study had undetectable or very low 25(OH)D concentrations and pronounced muscle weakness in the hands and upper legs, where grip strength was strongly associated with low 25(OH)D concentrations,” the researchers concluded. “These findings have implications for the antenatal care of this population. Maternity health care personnel should be aware of this increased frequency and manage their care accordingly.”

The researchers did not speculate whether some of the Somali women were suffering from osteomalacia or not.

I got rickets when i was 12 thank allah my bones didn't deform because they have already grown but i have a weaker muscles i have to take my vitamine d for the rest of my life now

 

[Waxwaalan]

this is true for men and women. i was healthy as a child, but i am very weak at the moment. i have been attacked by all kinds of colds, infections etc. rushed to emergency not too long ago because i've developed an extreme allergy+hay fever because of weak immune system.


my skin & hair is suffering because of the cold climate. it is so serious i want to flee to hargeysa

of all the places my dad could've chosen to go, he goes to the whitest & coldest country on earth. i will not die in this country, i will fight to make it out of here. pray for me

 

[Saar]

this is true for men and women. i was healthy as a child, but i am very weak at the moment. i have been attacked by all kinds of colds, infections etc. rushed to emergency not too long ago because i've developed an extreme allergy+hay fever because of weak immune system.


my skin & hair is suffering because of the cold climate. it is so serious i want to flee to hargeysa

of all the places my dad could've chosen to go, he goes to the whitest & coldest country on earth. i will not die in this country, i will fight to make it out of here. pray for me

Are you serious? let's pray for each other

 

[Waxwaalan]

Are you serious? let's pray for each other

Yes, its true. The sad thing is my mom doesn't know about these health things like most somalis, so if i complained my legs were weak (i have very weak kneecaps) or my stomach hurt (i've had stomach problems for years) she thinks its a silly reason like not drinking enough milk or not eating enough. i thought i was exaggerating what i felt, but now that i'm older i realize that my bones are weaker than the average swedish person. i exercise regularly & eat healthy, but i'm going to see an expert my sibling went to, cus he says its serious & we all need to go lol. i think i might do surgery.

 

[Inquisitive_]

When the sun is out, all the white people are sunbathing despite them needing just 20 minutes to get adequate vitamin D levels that will suffice them for a whole week.

However the blacks are no where to be seen even tough they need 10x the exposure, they are afraid of the sun, afraid of being tanned and that includes even the light skinned ones.

When I was to broke to go on holidays to sun bath, I would patiently wait for the UK summer to top up, I would be the only token black guy at the park sun bathing with the indigenous white fokes, the very few token black people that do come out, sit in the shades

That's what self hate does to a group of people and the Somali's are the ones most obsessed about shades of colours, no surprises that they are also the most deficient group in Vitamin D

 

[Gambar]

Jooji beenta naya. Jaamacad wiligeey ilahay ma igeeyo. Baidoa baan ku dashtay.

Dashtay aa?

 

[Bidaar Wanagsan]

Dashtay aa?

Yes, slip of the tongue, or keyboard. Autocorrect is not my friend.

 

[Waxwaalan]

When the sun is out, all the white people are sunbathing despite them needing just 20 minutes to get adequate vitamin D levels that will suffice them for a whole week.

However the blacks are no where to be seen even tough they need 10x the exposure, they are afraid of the sun, afraid of being tanned and that includes even the light skinned ones.

When I was to broke to go on holidays to sun bath, I would patiently wait for the UK summer to top up, I would be the only token black guy at the park sun bathing with the indigenous white fokes, the very few token black people that do come out, sit in the shades

That's what self hate does to a group of people and the Somali's are the ones most obsessed about shades of colours, no surprises that they are also the most deficient group in Vitamin D

true tho. i know somalis & xabashis here in sweden disappear during summer

 

[Gambar]

Yes, slip of the tongue, or keyboard. Autocorrect is not my friend.

Jooji beenta, you probably say ma taqaanta too.

 

[Bidaar Wanagsan]

Jooji beenta, you probably say ma taqaanta too.

Sadly I do.

 

[Saar]

Yes, its true. The sad thing is my mom doesn't know about these health things like most somalis, so if i complained my legs were weak (i have very weak kneecaps) or my stomach hurt (i've had stomach problems for years) she thinks its a silly reason like not drinking enough milk or not eating enough. i thought i was exaggerating what i felt, but now that i'm older i realize that my bones are weaker than the average swedish person. i exercise regularly & eat healthy, but i'm going to see an expert my sibling went to, cus he says its serious & we all need to go lol. i think i might do surgery.

Oh my god is it that bad. I began having pain in my legs when i was like 11 almost 12 i ignored it and went on with my life then suddenly i couldn't even walk cuz the pain was too much they said i had rickets so they gave me vitamin d and even offered me to do the surgery because it felt like my knees were deforming but it wasn't that bad so they said to leave it, it is not that bad and a little surgery wouldn't do anything anyways. And now when ever i don't feel good my father calls the doctor immediately cuz he thinks i hid it from him for months and because he knows i hate the hospitals

 

[Zailah]

Oh my god is it that bad. I began having pain in my legs when i was like 11 almost 12 i ignored it and went on with my life then suddenly i couldn't even walk cuz the pain was too much they said i had rickets so they gave me vitamin d and even offered me to do the surgery because it felt like my knees were deforming but it wasn't that bad so they said to leave it, it is not that bad and a little surgery wouldn't do anything anyways. And now when ever i don't feel good my father calls the doctor immediately cuz he thinks i hid it from him for months and because he knows i hate the hospitals

Aww bless, my mum always calls the doctors too when I’m ill only really because I have really bad asthma. Though not too many Somalis have that.

 

[Diomande]

Fat unhealthy black somali girls

 

[Unstable]

The real solution is when the harsh winter of Europe hits, Somalis need a holiday home in Somalia, soak up as much Vitamin D as possible as long as possible. Supplementations like Cod Liver Oil, Vitamin D 10K IU > work but nothing beats the sun actually hitting your skin and activating Vitamin D. If it possible, this should be a MUST, the body soaks up vitamin D and has a backup storage when winter hits.

 

[Unstable]

It's all the carbs and sugar they're consuming everyday. Imagine telling Non-Somalis the Somali diet they would faint.


Breakfast-- carbs, sugar, oil and more sugar in the tea.

Lunch- More carbs, sugar, and fat.

Snack-- sugar, sugar and yes you guessed it right ladies and gentlemen more sugar.

Dinner-- carbs, oil and more sugar.


This is what's killing us.

I’ll make a thread soon about sugar. Refined sugar isn’t what people think it is, it is a literal toxin to the body and negatively damages every single cell in the human body. Can’t believe it is even legal. Sugar along with grains has destroyed Somalis in near all aspects.

 

[Hades]

remember to wear sunscreen kids

 

[Apollo]

I take Vitamin D daily.

D3 version is the best I hear, in a liquid cap.

 

[sanger]

Where are the Somali women from around the world who can advocate for each-other through content?

YouTube

Magazines

Websites


Somali Hoyos love to copy eachother, my moms friend started eating a plant based diet and my mother starting immediately after hearing about her results. I had to sit with my mother for weeks to explain what she can and can’t eat. The doctors kept telling her to consume meat and dairy.

Unless she didn’t get positive feedback and from hearing about her friends health and mobility improve my she wouldn’t have changed her diet.

Somali mothers are in desperate need somali content that translates global health trends in away they can understand.

The solution is to start sending informative chain messages on Whatsapp. They have to be in Somali, and target the Hooyo population.

 

[Apollo]

The solution is to start sending informative chain messages on Whatsapp. They have to be in Somali, and target the Hooyo population.

Sometimes I wonder whether Somalis were imported to the West as some kind of secret scientific experiment.