A recent American Bedu post on veiling generated a lot of controversy and excellent discussion of differing views and perspectives. As a result, I have chosen to also broach the topic on some ways veiling and living primarily in a nocturnal society impact on women and their health.
It is a fact that for all individuals, their bodies require and need Vitamin D. The most natural source of Vitamin D3 is sunshine, something one can obtain freely and naturally with simple exposure to sunlight. Lack of a sufficient exposure to sunlight is proven to lead to a series of health related issues such as headaches, irritability, fatigue, greater susceptibility to other illnesses such as flu. Quoting from an informative article on the impact of a Vitamin D3 deficiency, “Studies have shown [that] deficiency in vitamin D is associated with osteoporosis, heart disease, autoimmune diseases, malignancies, and hypertension.”
Therefore it is not surprising to learn that Muslim women in the Middle East who conservatively cover with either the niqab and/or veil completely are more susceptible and likely have a Vitamin D3 deficiency that ultimately can lead to the other serious health problems associated with a lack of exposure to sunlight.
I know many Saudi women to whom I am either related by marriage or friends who are anemic and routinely require multiple blood transfusions each year. All of these women also choose to remain completely covered when they are outside the home and many times will keep their heads and complete body covered when inside the home too.
Now the young generation of Saudi women ranging in age from as early as 13 to 35 have chosen a different lifestyle which also results in a Vitamin D3 deficiency. These are the women who I call the “Nocturnal Society.” The Nocturnal Society Syndrome is born from a culture which caters to little activity during the day and then flourishes building to a crescendo of activity as the night wears on. I observed this syndrome from Saudi females in my extended family and the nocturnal society syndrome is at its height when school has been let and during Ramadan but does tend to exist throughout the year. The women will remain inside of their homes during the day. Many of the younger generation like to sleep until four pm if they are allowed. However even when they are awake and inside their homes, the home is typically lit by artificial fluorescent lighting. Windows typically remain covered with curtains for privacy rather than allow in natural sunlight. By the time the women will make their way outside of the house the sun has already gone down and darkness prevails. The women will then continue to enjoy themselves in the wee hours of the next morning with visiting various shopping malls, eating out and visiting with friends who are also usually extended family. Their day will come to a close prior to sunrise when they enjoy a large breakfast before going to bed to sleep through another sun-filled day.
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I actually experienced that this past summer while visiting my sister-in-law in Saudi! I visited with my boys for almost 2 months, and the nights became progressively longer. By the end of the visit, we were going to sleep around 8-9 am and waking between 4-6 pm. Upon waking, I would grab a cup of Nescafe and run up to the roof for the last of the sun, and then stay till the call of maghreb prayer. They probably thought I was weird! But it really was so disconcerting having my schedule turned upside-down. On the good side however, I didn’t experience too much jet lag when I arrived home!
I tend to have some depression during the winter months, I think die to lack of sunlight. I can’t imagine avoiding the sun for my entire life!
correction: due to lack of sunlight.
growing up my skin always tended to be medium to dark because i was always at the beach…whether i was in california or lebanon….
but these past few years i have avoided the sun…and now i cant even be in the sun..or else i get burnt.
its almost like my skin became acustomed to no sun.
my photo on my passports and my drivers liscence look like a differerent person because of the drastic change in the tan skin color to no tan.
salam
hmm? well.. there’s a saying that a home with no sunlight is a sick home. i think we could still have sunlight at home. get a skylight, windows with that patterned glass so you’ll still have privacy etc.
i love seeing those very high window which then makes the light fall into the hall or something. also, i once saw a ceiling made of beautiful colorful glass – i was laying on the carpet looking up seeing how lovely the sunlight pass through it. مشالله
Support education & engineer beautiful sun lighted home. الحمد لله
This post brings to light a problem I have heard of before. When I was hospitalized for knee surgery a few years ago, my nurses told me that they sometimes saw pathological hip fractures, where the hip breaks without any trauma to the hip, in women in their twenties. This is always due to advanced osteoporosis, a disease usually prevalent in much older women. The cause? total lack of vitamin D.
I think apart from the segregation rules for women, the architecture of living apartments in Saudi Arabia is also problematic. For example, in Indian villages and in many small towns, it is common to see a big courtyard which is an open space within the house, where women sit during the day doing their work. If only Saudi houses have a courtyard this can give them an open space in the privacy of home without having to go out.
Besides, all houses can have a high wall around the roof where women can sit without being seen from below.
There can be terraces in the inner area in the apartments which don’t have a courtyard, not facing the road, where women can sit.
I don’t see why Saudi apartments can’t have large windows to admit light during daytime, with light coloured thin curtains, which can be adjusted to admit privacy or to admit light as desired. The windows can have thin nets fixed to them. They can have skylights covered with glass in the ceiling and on the wall adjacent to the roof to admit light as the British houses used to have in the 19th century.
There are so many ways in which natural light and sun can be admitted, if they only want to make these architectural changes in their houses.
Thankfully my home in Saudi does a very large courtyard with all the main rooms looking in to the courtyard having ceiling to floor windows (plus entry ways to the courtyard) which bring so much light into the house. Many villas are designed with inner courtyards which are private and so bright and light. I’m not sure about apartment’s though. The only one we stayed at temporarily had little to no light since the windows all had filters to ensure noone could ever see in!
Interesting post! Even I feel the effects of the nocturnal lifestyle here in the US… my husband thrives on it and if I don’t watch myself, I’ll start going to bed after fajr and waking up in the late afternoon too! He is unaffected as he only has class one day a week, but I get really thrown off constantly because I have to work everyday! On Mondays I usually roll in to teach with only an hour or two of sleep from getting so messed up from the weekend (despite my best attempts not to get sucked into it). I keep telling myself that one day he’ll understand and will have to keep a normal schedule too… but if this lifestyle is prevalent in KSA, will he really?!
There are Saudis who choose to keep their nocturnal hours while in the US. My stepkids tended to do this especially as they wanted to keep in touch and SMS and chat with their friends back in Saudi. But they quickly learned that if they wanted to go out to any shops or restaurants, the hours were much earlier than Saudi so they had to get out and about earlier.
veiling according to me is not the source of vitamin d deficiency because its not only when women go out of the house they get sun…they also sit outside in their lawns or verandas that get sufficient sunlight and they dont have their faces covered then and light penetrates through everday clothes so even if the head is covered or the whole body that, shouldn’t be a problem
Nowadays there are fibre screens available with slit panels, which can be adjusted to accommodate light and sun and at the same time they provide privacy as nothing is seen from outside.
The point is that any number of changes can be made if one has the open mindedness to accommodate light, sun and air. But it seems the problem in saudi Arabia is that the society does not want to change things to lead a healthy life – the tendency to have a nocturnal life and to live in artificial life all the time is reflective of that.
My wife would say there is also an upside. She has noted that the skin of women who dont get too much sunlight tend to hold up better with age than those of women who spend a lot of time in the sun.
Anyone who has seen chronic sunbathers would probably agree with this. Too much sun can be a negative as much as not enough sun.
Growing up for years in a place with a lot of sun, I know that too much sun exposure can prematurely age you, never mind set you up for issues with skin cancer. My father was a sun bather and got sin cancer in his late 50s from which he died.
*skin cancer*
Skylights and windows in homes or cars etc. will not let in the rays that produce Vitamin D in your skin.
regarding possible skin cancer from sun exposure:
“Numerous other studies have supported this research, showing that modest unprotected exposure to sunlight helps the body produce the vitamin D it needs to keep bones healthy and protect against cancer, including skin cancer. Yes, you read that right. Of course, repeated sunburns – especially in childhood and in very fair-skinned people – have been linked to melanoma. But there is no credible scientific evidence that moderate sun exposure causes skin cancer.”
- Frank Lipman, Mollie Doyle, Spent: Revive: Stop Feeling Spent and Feel Great Again
12. “On the other hand, lack of sun exposure and subsequent vitamin D deficiency kills more than one million people each year. Comparatively, the risk of being harmed by the sun is minimal. The most dangerous of skin cancers, which is melanoma, usually appears in parts of the skin where the sun does not reach at all, or not reach enough. If you have the opportunity, for optimal protection expose your entire body to the sun, including the private parts.”
- Andreas Moritz, Cancer Is Not A Disease — It’s A Survival Mechanism
Interesting topic, but I disagree with a lot of things here:
Sun is a great source of Vitamin D, but it also causes a lot of skin problems, so in fact only certain hours during the day is good for us to be exposed to the sun.. However, the sun penetrates the cloth , so even though ppl are covered they still get all the benefit, however they dont need to use as much sunscreen as most others who dont cover.
Doctors advices are to get sunlight for 10 mins during the day, so if a woman is aware of her health you will find her opening her window or sitting outside in the sun for at least 10 mins during the day, those who don’t do so are just negative examples.
Therefore the issue isn’t about veiling/covering that is a factor of their vitamin deficiency, i would say it is their ignorance.
In islam we follow rules because we believe in them, our God has ordered us to do things, because they are good for us, whether it is proven to be good for or not, we still follow it, So far they may not have come up with good studies that proves how good is veiling to woman , but may be soon they will and others will then believe in God’s words.
Last but not least, I have been in other parts in the middle east, and the way ppl live in Saudi Arabia, is completely different than other parts of the middle east. For example, ppl in my home country, Syria,gets up early morning and they do a lot of errands and work during the day.
I have seen many Saudis here started to change their lifestyle as well and they do get up early in the morning and enjoy the beautiful sun , but the problem in Saudi is that most of the places for woman are closed, unlike other places in the middle east, but I believe in the saying that says if there’s a will there’s a way. For example, if a woman wants to get sunlight, even if she covers from head to toe, she can at least get out of her house and walk around her own building for 10 mins, but the problem is when we meet some lazy ppl they tend to give us a bad image about the whole society, i think that is not fair to the rest of the society.
However thank you for raising the issue. and giving us the chance to comment on it.
This is a lie. Hijab does not cause Vit. D deficiency. This accusation has been long refuted:
http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentID=2010012561279
Oh Carol you mean the dungeons not houses!!
This issue is depressing for me, the majority of houses in Saudi have little to absolutely no natural light during the day, which drove me insane when we were looking for rent the second time + the windows are 10 times out 10 of a very small size (if it’s tinted at least they should make them bigger. Fortunately our apartment has some light but not as much as I was hoping for…
Really sunlight inside the house is a big THING for me, to the extent that living in Saudi Arabia made me think of having a house made of glass instead of concrete.
They say that it’s because during the summer the houses would become unbearable because the heat (they forgot we live in the 21st century where we have insulation + AC’s).
One time I asked a landlord why isn’t there that much sunlight in the house he said that too much sunlight would damage the furniture & colors would fade, but still that’s not an excuse!
& for God’s sake there’s an invention called curtains for all the privacy in the world!!
Thanks for the GREAT post Carol, that allowed me to let out some steam.
We live in a house that we did not build ourselves- as many people do. We just punched a giant hole in the wall and added a giant window. The wall was crying for it- and that wall faces the garden- it seems strange the window wasn’t there from the beginning.
@Abu Omar
That article is not really proof. Clearly it had a position to push. But that does not mean it isn’t right. Just that it isn’t proof.
The larger issue is why do women here have dangerously low vitamin D?? Clearly something- or a combination of somethings is not right.
Many women do not have private gardens and are encouraged to keep windows blocked and not to go out. Or they have no means to go out because they are driverless or the man in their life won’t take them. OR they are living the night life. It’s ALL unhealthy.
Carol…
Maybe I missed something in the post but why do people prefer this nocturnal lifestyle? There have been studies that say people who work with the bodies natural rhythm experience less problems across the board. The pineal gland is a gland in the brain that secretes melatonin which is a hormone that is thought to aid in sleep. Light (day time) inhibits the secretion of melatonin and therefore helps us wake and stay in a wakened state. Darkness causes the pineal gland to secrete melatonin, thereby aiding sleepiness. The nocturnal people are fighting their natural body rhythms so I am wondering if there is a reason for this and why one would prefer that.
Of course, you already mentioned the issues with Vitamin D deficiency. I believe that there are pills on the market now that you can get Vitamin D from, but the only way barring that is to get enough sunlight.
I’d love to see a study done to look at the rates of productivity and GDP (not considering things like oil) based upon things like this. It is my experience, the cultures and societies that keep very late hours also tend to have a much lower rate of productivity.
Think about places like the Middle East…….Italy, Spain and other Med. societies.
I dont think such societal norms are actually healthy on a whole host of fronts. I dont know which came first, but I think these types of hours are associated with a lack of work ethic and a lack of productivity. Compare Spain and a country like Holland, the hours that are normally kept, GDP and production.
It would be very interesting.
I believe the noctornal hours/lifestyle are kept more to culture and customs and the infrastructure was then put into place to support the lifestyle. For example the malls and shops stay open much later than those in the West or other places in the world. Even many businesses that in most places would have regular working hours will have split working hours in Saudi where the prime hours for business are 8pm – 11pm.
The bulk of Saudi social life begins after the last prayer.
But why the social life goes on to such late hours never ceases to amaze me. My husband would get invited to dinners (men only) which do not start until 9pm and if he’s lucky, food would be served by 11pm but usually was even later. Same would apply to women. And then if you are talking about a wedding, those start around 11pm and go until the next day.
I agree with Abusinan that in Spain we have low productivity. I think the main reason for small windows in Ksa is more sun gets in to house hotter it get’s inside there, not all people can afford AC. And here in Spain there are lot of women who have osteoporosis and they spend lot of time at the beach and sun. Many people don’t know how important is to eat correctly , for healthy bones one must not eat white sugar and not drink carbonated drinks like coca cola etc.
I now eat dinner before I go to weddings- and when the bride makes her entrance I slip out and skip the dinner. Sometimes, if it is ridiculously late, I slip out before the brides arrival. I don’t think dinner tastes right or sits right at 3 am.
@AbuOmar, I do not think you provided proof with that article either for or against. The article does not site who conducted the study, when, where, what journal, did it get peer reviewed etc. This is typical of the Arabic press, sighting studies all the time, but with no references. Science just does not work that way in providing evidence. The article did not even touch on some of the complexities of teh issues. A good example, in the US vitamin D milk has been the main weapon in fighting the the deficiency in the population. Asians, African Americans, and middle eastern have a much higher degree of lactose intolerance than whites and thus may get less vitamin D.
Never the less, I think Carol is right on this issue. I agree it is the Nocturnal life style that is the issue. Wearing protective closing, such as Hijab can protect from the sun in hot places like the middle east while providing enough open skin for the sun to help the body in producing vitamin D. Niqab would not achieve this. The issue becomes, with women spending most of the day indoors they are getting less sun. Note protective closing does not have to be Hijab, as men in places like Saudi dress in protective clothing that cover most of the body also, without having a formal Islamic dress.
Women who veil aren’t the only ones susceptible to vitamin D deficiency. Dr. Mercola interviewed a doctor of physics who has researched vitamin D, William B. Grant, and he said that 80-90% of Americans are deficient in this vitamin. He also said that those who have the best exposure to vitamin D live in Hawaii and rural regions of the southwest and those with the worse status are dark-skinned people and inhabitants of Alaska and urban regions of the northeast. During the winter and spring time, most Americans can become deficient obviously due to the weakness of the sun’s intensity. [http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2004/04/03/vitamin-d-grant.aspx]
Since I spend most of my time indoors and veil when I go out of the house, I supplement with Vitamin D3 and iron just to be on the safe side.
I also veil but get outside every day. Nevertheless, I also take vitamin D supplements just to be sure – and that’s something I’ve done for a very long time, even pre-conversion. I’m so white that I can’t really be exposed to the sun very long without getting burned, so it’s a precaution I took long ago.
american bedu,
are you a muslim?
your postings always seem to follow this pattern…post something schmaltzy, bash saudi,post something scmaltzy, bash saudi ad nauseum. you allude to something negative in saudi society, then the commentators come in with their own negativity.
you know as well as i that to most people saudi is islam most don’t make that distinction. there is a distinction between saudi culture and islam,not in everything, mind. although you might say, “oh my issue is with saudi culture” in the process you are turning prople against Islam by providing a forum for islamophobic commentary.
see, i don’t understand why you a middle aged lady is posting about muslim dating (the concept is against Islam),the first night of the newly wed couple? these issues might be interest a youngster enough to do a post on them.
why don’t you post hadith, reminders to the believers?
Concerned Reader:
There are many blogs about Saudi where the emphasis is indeed on Saudi and Islam with plenty of hadiths posted.
I am writing frankly and candidly on all aspects of Saudi culture, customs and traditions. Not everyone may agree or like what I post but that is expected in blogging.
And whether I am muslim or not does not change on what I have chosen to post about.
Those who come to my blog and do not like my blog or style of writing will usually go somewhere else where they feel more comfortable. Those who stay are welcomed to share their perspectives in a courteous and respectful way as there may be commentors who will agree to disagree with each others views but want to discuss perspectives.
@Concerned Reader,
I am a Muslim and I think it is VERY important to remind people that Saudi, and it’s culture, is NOT Islam! If Islam were Saudi and Saudi was Islam, the religion would not have a billion followers today, it would have died 1,400 years ago!
Alhamdulillah, our deen is FAR above any society and culture, ESPECIALLY Saudi culture! No one is turning against Islam because of this blog, I would think the opposite is true.
People come here thinking Islam is Saudi and hating Islam and Saudi because of that. After reading a few posts it is clear Saudi culture is not Islam and that actually would make people more likely to appreciate Islam, not less.
Dating is not allowed in Islam, but it happens over the entire Muslim world. To ignore this fact would be to put your head in the sand. If you want a blog that is centered on religion……..I suggest you go find a blog centered on religion.
Yes, it is true that prolonged exposure to sun is dangerous, especially if the sun is as hot as in Saudi Arabia. But all the same, all houses need the sun, that’s why I suggested skylight etc. And while it’s not adviseable to be out in hot sun for a long time, one should get the sun in early morning when the sun is not very hot. living in dark houses is not adviseable, nor shutting the sun out completely from one’s life.
I myself live in a country where the sun is very hot most part of the year – the temperature can go upto 47 Degrees celsius in summer and it’s become a part of the culture here for people to dislike the sun. Sunbathing is certainly not part of culture here precisely for this reason, though lots of foreigners come here for sunbathing.
However, people here do like to stay in the sun in the morning, especially during winters. I don’t think people should be dissuaded from getting some sun for some time in the morning, which is good for them.
I’d like to add that Muslims in my country lead a perfectly normal life just as everyone else, doing their work in the day and sleeping in the night.
One of the things this post has reminded me is how unnaturally we often live our lives today, not just Saudis. In the US many children have become obese because they eat too much bad food and don’t do anything that isn’t done near some kind of tv or computer screen.
I do wonder if Saudis could have had nocturnal habits before modern electric lighthing.
I do have a question for those of you who are Muslims who live in the West. If dating is wrong, what would replace it in the West? The family and social structures that exist the match up people in more traditional societies aren’t there any more and they haven’t been for generations. My parents met each other through mutual friends (and this was in the 1940′s).
The idea of marrying someone you barely know is seen as impractical.
Jerry, I am an American Muslim though not living in the west. Personally I have no problem with dating within certain parameters. No being “alone” and no dating for fun. You would “date” with the intention of learning if the person is suitable as a spouse. Not to pass the time- or have someone to do things with ’cause your not ready for marriage. There would be no dating UNTIL your ready for marriage.
But I am also a proponant of people going out and socializing in groups. That is a good way for people to get to know each other, without the temptation that isolation might bring and also develops social skills and gives you a good friend base.
But honestly I am more liberal than most Muslims who will answer this.
@Jerry,
I am a Westerner married to a Saudi lady. We met through a Muslim matrimonial site online over 7 years ago. We got to know each other through long e-mails, online conversations and phone calls that often lasted six hours at a time.
When we felt it was right, I met her family, we all got on well and we set a date for the wedding.
We didnt date, but with modern technology we got to know each other the best we could without living together or doing things as Muslims we couldnt.
Another reason to stay in and cover is to keep your skin as white as possible! White skin is highly desired.
If you are unlucky to be born with a darker skin as your siblings , especially if youre a girl, you will be made to suffer.
A girls market value is a lot higher if she has really light skin.
Besides the problems you mentioned American Bedu, there is also the problems of rickets. A horrible disease which makes children severely disformed and invalids. Women who veil are in danger of giving birth to deformed children. As veiling is practised more, there are more children born with deformed skeletons. This is noted in England where it is a matter of grave concern.
This disease is wholly avoildable if the mothers and young children get out into the sunlight more.
Our bodies are designed to need a certain amount of sunlight on our skin. So if you think you can do without and get ill, and your babies will be deformed: then you could put two and two together.
The conclusion is that Allah does not want women to cover completely. Otherwise no illnesses and no sick children would result from covering your body.
Women who veil are in danger of giving birth to deformed children. As veiling is practised more, there are more children born with deformed skeletons. This is noted in England where it is a matter of grave concern.
so, you have evidence that all of these Muslim women are actually wearing hijab/niqab rather than a loose fitting dupatta or no scarf at all.
@ a concerned reader:
The report I read stated specifically muslim women. The upsurge in cases of rickets was in the muslim community and asians specifically. As the cause of rickets is insufficient exposure to sunlight they did relate the cause to the custom of covering.They also mentioned that girls in puberty have especial need for enough sunlight on their skin to develop into a healthy adult. And as that is typically the moment they are required to cover as much skin as possible.
Thank you for making me think about it again.
It seems clear that not only niqaab and gloves are responsible. Hijab, staying indoors and covering arms and legs at all times is allready enough to cause deficiency and illness.
@Save the Women,
I had forgotten about rickets. I remember our pediatrician here mentioning how suprised he was here at the prevelance of rickets in such a sunny country.
@ Sandy,
I know! There should not even be one case of rickets. Ever!
Why can’t people think logically? The conclusion is clear: If Allah made our bodies in such a way that we and our babies are very sick when we don’t get sunlight on our skins. Then how can he want us to cover our skins?
Either Allah wants us to cover our skin but then we should see no illnesses resulting.
Or Allah does not want us to cover our skins and the diseases and deformed babies are the result of doing something (covering) Allah never wanted us to do.
The truth is: covering is against Allah’s will.
save the women: i think you’re taking that one a bit too far…
we need both the hijab and vit D. Allah would not order one to deprive us of the other.
i think it has more to do with lack of education (knowledge of the need for vit D, etc.) and less to do with covering.
and on a lighter note:
i once asked my saudi husband what the deal is with the small windows here in saudi. he said: “we live in a desert…we don’t like the sun!” his reaction was quite amusing. he seemed genuinely surprised that i wanted more sunlight in our house!
[...] choose to wear a hijjab which covers their hair and a niqab which covers all but their eyes. The social lives of Saudi women generally start after dark which further limits their exposure to [...]