A study of Turkish girls aged 13 to 17 reports that those who wear concealing clothes for religious reasons had significantly lower levels of vitamin D than other girls, and that half of this group were actually deficient in vitamin D. The bone density measurements, however, were not significantly different, despite this age being critical for the laying down of bone mass. It remains to be seen whether health problems emerge later on. The authors say that vitamin D supplements may be useful for any religious groups that wear concealing clothes (Journal of Nutrition 2005;135: 218-22).

The restriction of sales of paracetamol in the United Kingdom since 1998 has been said to have reduced the number of cases of paracetamol poisoning, but the impact of pack size may not be the reason behind this reduction. The authors of an observational study in the Journal of Public Health (online publication 6 Jan; doi:10.1093/pubmed/fdh216) point out that mortality for paracetamol on its own was already on the decline in 1997, and that the two major dips seen over the next few years may be attributable to random variation rather than design.

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