Vitamin D

Why Do We Need Vitamin D?

Got D?

Are you getting enough vitamin D to support bone health, keep your spirits up and fight or alleviate certain cancers, heart disease, diabetes, asthma, arthritis and multiple sclerosis? Probably not.

Are you as surprised as I was by the long list of vitamin D benefits?

A lot of the research on vitamin D has taken place in the last ten years.

When the DRI (Dietary Reference Intake) was set at 600 IU, the only recognized benefit of vitamin D was preventing bone disease and deterioration.

The more recent research studies indicate you should get 1,000 IU daily and also that up to 10,000 IU a day is safe.

It is difficult to get 1,000 IU a day through diet and sun exposure (which causes your body to produce vitamin D). The amount produced by sun exposure is diminished by sun protection, sunless days and dark skin, so it's tricky to estimate. Further, the ability to produce vitamin D from sunlight declines with age.

The best foods for vitamin D are fatty fish like salmon, trout and mackerel and vitamin D-fortified foods. Fortified milk has 100 IU per 8 ounce glass and many other dairy products like yogurt are also available in D-fortified form.

The bottom line is that most people need supplements to get enough vitamin D.

Here's something very important to know when purchasing D supplements or D-fortified foods. Check the label to make sure the product uses D3 (cholecalciferol) rather than D2 (ergocalciferol) which has recently been shown to be far less potent.

The Moody Blues Probably Didn't Get Enough Vitamin D and Were Low in Seratonin

If you get the moody blues right before your period or have mood swings due to perimenopause, there are simple steps you can take to boost your serotonin levels and get relief for yourself and those around you.

When estrogen declines, the body produces less of the feel-good chemical, serotonin.

Marie-Annette Brown, Ph.D. and professor at the University of Washington School of Nursing, has coauthored "When Your Body Gets the Blues". In it, she and her colleagues describe a treatment program they have developed.

They call it LEVITY for Light, Exercise and Vitamin Intervention Therapy. Clever and easy to remember.

The Light part is to stimulate your body to produce more vitamin D. You already know why I recommend that you take vitamin D supplements rather than relying on the sun. But I'm 100% on board with the rest of the LEVITY program.

This article is for information only. It does not purport to offer medical advice.