Although footballers are less affected by deficiencies than indoor sportsmen and women, the benefits of "the sunshine vitamin" should not be overlooked. Essential for bone health and testosterone levels, it also improves physical performance and recovery. As early as 1952, a German study demonstrated a correlation between Vitamin D concentration and strength in the body, based on a sample of 120 children exposed to ultraviolet light. The result: four months after the start of the experiment, these children were on average 56% stronger than others during physical activities. A more recent study, published in the magazine Sport et Vie, also showed that the loss of muscular power was much lower for sportsmen and women who had received doses of vitamin D (6% compared with 32% for the others). It even enables footballers who are deficient in vitamin D to gain up to 20% of their VO2 max and speeds up recovery thanks to a quicker return to normal enzyme levels. So, let's get sunny!
Brief
Vitamin D, an ally not to be underestimated