'Sunlight is good for you'

A scientist is claiming too much sunscreen can lead to vitamin deficiency.

Professor Michael Holick of Boston University is advising people to spend up to 10 minutes a day in the sun unprotected to guard against a lack of vitamin D.

Vitamin D, produced in the body when it is exposedto sunlight, is needed for healthy muscle and bone, and may help protect against cancer.

But too much exposure to the sun's rays can cause skin cancer. The Government recommends applying sunscreen of at least factor 15 an hour before going out in the sun. Three studies by Mr Holick in Boston found a quarter of adolescents and half of the elderly who took part suffered vitamin D deficiency.

He said: "In our efforts to protect people from the sun we've thrown the baby out with the bathwater."