If you’re already a member of the family at SkinSport in Anthem, AZ, you know we focus on all aspects of healthy living, including diet. What you eat provides the building blocks for healthy cells and proper functioning of the body. Until recently, vitamin D was almost neglected, but the recent pandemic brought about evidence that it boosts your immunity and needs to play a more important role in a healthy lifestyle. A study in Spain found that 80% of the COVID-19 patients in a hospital in Spain suffered from vitamin D deficiency. In fact, the doctors conducting the study suggested that the elderly and those at risk with a comorbidity needed to receive supplemental vitamin D as a preventative.
Vitamin D comes from exposure to the sun.
Vitamin D is the sunshine vitamin that the body makes when the rays of the sun hits the skin and changes the cholesterol to vitamin D. While it might seem like it would be easy to get adequate amounts, it isn’t. More and more people use sun blocks to avoid skin cancer, which is prudent. However, there is a way to do safe sunning and reap both benefits. For those who live in a northern climate, there may not be enough sun, or they have too much of their body covered to get any. The darker your skin is, the less vitamin D is made, so the higher the risk for vitamin D deficiency.
Too little vitamin D has severe consequences, but so does too much.
Vitamin D deficiency can lead to muscle weakness, osteoporosis, cancer, death and depression. Studies show that getting too little vitamin D has an effect on the bones because one of its role is to help maintain normal levels of phosphorous and calcium. It’s necessary for the body and brain. It maintains muscle functioning, controls inflammation and boosts brain power and hormone functioning. In extreme cases, where people took 100X the recommended amount, toxicity built up in the body. It causes fatigue, vomiting, nausea, forgetfulness, slurred speech, and elevated blood calcium levels.
Boost your vitamin D levels with a healthy diet and safe sunning.
Most food high in vitamin D is fortified, but there are natural vitamin D sources. Fatty fish, liver, fish roe, eel, duck fat, lard made from free-range pork fat, eggs and cod liver oil. For animal sources, it all depends on how the animal was raised. If it’s grass fed or free-range it’s a better source of the vitamin. There’s even experimental mushrooms raised under ultraviolet lights, which allows them to convert the light to vitamin D.
- Even though vitamin D is called a vitamin, it’s really a steroid hormone that’s quite unique. New studies show that people who spend more time in the sun live longer than those who don’t.
- As you age, you need more vitamin D. Between the age of one and seventy, the daily required amount is approximately 600 IU. After 70, the amount increases to 800 IU each day.
- For good dental health, the body needs vitamin D. The teeth are constantly repairing themselves with calcium and phosphorous and vitamin D helps those minerals to be absorbed.
- Safe sunning means staying out in the sun long enough for your skin to absorb enough sun to produce melanin. That amount of time will vary based on complexion. While a slight pinking that disappears the next day is okay, a sun burn can cause skin damage and potential skin cancer.
For more information, contact us today at Skin Sport Fitness Center