Natasha Mazzone splits social media with vitamin D and beaches comment

DA MP Natasha Mazzone had social media buzzing on Tuesday, after her comments on vitamin D and the reopening of beaches.

It all started when Mazzone welcomed President Cyril Ramaphosa's announcement that some lockdown restrictions would be eased.

Among the changes were the unbanning of the sale of booze, reopening all beaches, and shortening the curfew from 11pm to 4am.

“These changes have been made possible by the significant reduction in Covid-19 hospital admissions across all provinces, reducing the pressure on beds and hospital personnel,” said Ramaphosa.

Taking to Twitter, Mazzone explained why she had been arguing for the reopening of beaches.

“Covid-19 hates vitamin D, which your body gets naturally from sunshine, you should be in open spaces with lots of fresh air. Our government closed beaches and parks and we all crammed into malls and tight spaces," she said.

According to WebMD, vitamin D is an essential nutrient and recent research suggests that it may help guard against Covid-19.

It is recommended that people should get out in the sun for at least 15 to 30 minutes a day.

Adults should get a minimum of 600 IU of vitamin D each day and 800 IU if older than 70. Children should get about 600 IU each day and infants up to the age of 12 months should get 400 IU a day.

Mazzone's tweet drew mixed reactions, with some asking if vitamin D was only found at beaches and nowhere else.

Mazzone did not let the jabs slide easily and clapped back.

Here is a snapshot of some of the reactions: