Haired mammals synthesize vitamin D through ultraviolet exposure on skin beneath their fur.
Evidence from studies on dairy cattle confirms that haired mammals synthesize vitamin D through ultraviolet exposure on their skin, although the fur coat acts as a barrier that reduces UV-B absorption.
The retrieved papers include direct empirical evidence (papers 2 and 8) investigating vitamin D synthesis in haired mammals (dairy cows). The studies show that while hair reduces the efficiency of UV-B absorption, unshaved cows still successfully synthesize vitamin D in response to ultraviolet irradiation. Therefore, the claim is supported.
J. Hodnik, Marko Jankovec, J. Ježek, Žiga Krušič, Stefan Mitterhofer, J. Starič. Effects of UV-B light exposure during automatic milking on vitamin D levels in Holstein Friesian cows. 2025. https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2024.1433230
Demonstrates that UV-B irradiation during milking significantly increases vitamin D levels in both shaved and unshaved dairy cows, confirming synthesis occurs even with fur present.
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J. Hodnik, M. Jankovec, J. Ježek, Žiga Krušič, Stefan Mitterhofer, J. Starič. UV-B light irradiation during automatic milking for vitamin D supplementation in dairy cows. 2024. https://doi.org/10.5937/femesprumns24013h
Confirms that cattle synthesize vitamin D in the skin via ultraviolet irradiation, though hair acts to reduce UV-B absorption.
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