Vitamin D, what is it good for?

As it turns out, just about everything. It's just no one seems to want to tout its benefits, which there is an explanation for!

For starters, it's free! So there's no incentive for the pharmaceutical or supplement industries to tout its benefits. [They can't sell you sunlight].

And the sunscreen industry doesn't want you to know [moderate] direct exposure to sunlight (you just don't want to burn) is actually beneficial, because that realization would mean lower sales of sunscreen products. Remember, they've built an entire industry based on the fact sunlight is bad for you.

Well, it's time we stop believing everything we hear, and start questioning the motives of some. Remember what I said in a previous post

Don’t be stupid. Everyone has an agenda, and it most likely isn’t to benefit you.

As it turns out, it is estimated that 75% of teens and adults may be vitamin D deficient.

So what are some of the benefits of Vitamin D?

It is crucial for the absorption and metabolism of calcium and phosphorous, which have various functions, especially the maintenance of healthy bones.

It is an immune system regulator.

It may be an important way to arm the immune system against disorders like the common cold, say scientists from the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital and Children's Hospital Boston.

It may reduce the risk of developing multiple sclerosis. Multiple sclerosis is much less common the nearer you get to the tropics, where there is much more sunlight, according to Dennis Bourdette, chairman of the Department of Neurology and director of the Multiple Sclerosis and Neuroimmunology Center at Oregon Health and Science University, USA.

Vitamin D may have a key role in helping the brain to keep working well in later life, according to a study of 3000 European men between the ages of 40 and 79.

Vitamin D is probably linked to maintaining a healthy body weight, according to research carried out at the Medical College of Georgia, USA.

It can reduce the severity and frequency of asthma symptoms, and also the likelihood of hospitalizations due to asthma, researchers from Harvard Medical School found after monitoring 616 children in Costa Rica.

It has been shown to reduce the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis in women.

A form of vitamin D could be one of our body's main protections against damage from low levels of radiation, say radiological experts from the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Various studies have shown that people with adequate levels of vitamin D have a significantly lower risk of developing cancer, compared to people with lower levels. Vitamin D deficiency was found to be prevalent in cancer patients regardless of nutritional status, in a study carried out by Cancer Treatment Centers of America.

If you want more information about vitamin D, I recommend visiting The Vitamin D Council website, but what follows are a couple of points I thought were worth highlighting.

There are only two ways to get Vitamin D in the amounts necessary for proper health: Ultraviolet B (UVB) exposure and vitamin D supplementation. Diet should not be considered a satisfactory source of vitamin D. The few foods which do contain vitamin D, contain too little to be of any noticeable benefit.

For vitamin D production, sun exposure should be midday between the hours of approximately 10am-2pm (11am-3pm during daylight savings time). These hours will vary slightly according to latitude. The closer to solar noon, the more vitamin D produced.

But if you live above the 35th parallel, then you have to contend with what is known as "vitamin D winter", when you can't get Vitamin D from the sun, and you must resort to supplements. See note below!

Estimated Vitamin D Winter months according to latitude:

• Latitudes from zero degrees to around 35º north or south allow year-round vitamin D production, though the amount produced will decrease as latitude increases.^3,5(South of a line extending from just north of LA to just north of Atlanta)


• Latitudes above 40º north will experience Vitamin D Winter from around November through early March. (Salt Lake City is about 40º north)


• Latitudes below 40º south, around June through August. (Wellington, NZ is about 41º south, and Melbourne Australia is about 37 degrees south)


• Latitudes above 50º north, October through early April.(London England is 51º north)


• Latitudes below 50º south, mid-April through July.⁴(The Falkland Islands and Ushuaia fall into that category)

Fortunately I live at 34º north latitude, but a good rule of thumb is:

If your shadow is longer than you are tall (an indicator of the oblique angle of the Sun), you are not making much vitamin D.

[note]While I am against supplementation of any kind, I recognize the fact many people live in areas where it is just not possible to get the needed vitamin D all year round. Therefore for those who may experience a Vitamin D winter (referenced above), I reluctantly recommend a Vitamin D supplement.

Just be careful not to overdose on supplements. Too much vitamin D can be harmful. The body has a self regulating mechanism which prevents overdosing on vitamin D from the sun, but there is no such mechanism when it comes to taking supplements.[/note]

So quit wasting your time on the computer (I got my 30 minutes of sun already today), and get outside, even if it's only to just sit in the sun.