Lounge in the sun to be `hearty`

London: You may want to start relaxing in the sunshine as a team of researchers has discovered that a lack of vitamin D is linked to coronary artery disease, heart attacks and stroke.

Researchers at the Intermountain Medical Centre Heart Institute in Salt Lake City, Utah, found that patients are protected against heart trouble if their vitamin D level is anywhere above 15 nanograms [billionths of a gram] per milliliter, the Daily Express reported.

Brent Muhlestein said that some researchers have proposed that anything above 15 was a safe level but the numbers hadn't been backed up with research until now. Even if any level above 15 is safe one out of 10 people still has vitamin D levels lower than that. This equates to a large percentage of our population. The best way to determine one's vitamin D level is by getting a blood test.

Vitamin D has been credited with other health properties and has been linked with combating cancer, multiple sclerosis, asthma and type 2 diabetes.

The study was presented at the 2015 American Heart Association Scientific Session in Orlando, Florida.