Vitamin D: Everything you need to know about it

Benefits vitamin D for specific health conditions and diseases:

Bone health and muscle strength - Vitamin D may help increase muscle strength by preserving muscle fibers, which in turn helps to prevent falls.

Cancer - low vitamin D levels might increase colon cancer risk. Vitamin D can inhibit the development of tumors and slow the growth of existing tumors including those from the breast, ovary, colon, prostate, and brain. In humans which have higher serum levels of vitamin D are associated with substantially lower rates of colon, pancreatic, prostate, and other cancers.

Type 2 diabetes - Vitamin D deficiency may negatively affect the biochemical pathways that lead to the development of Type 2 diabetes (T2DM), including impairment of beta cell function in the pancreas, insulin resistance, and inflammation. Vitamin D supplements reduce risk of diabetes.

Immune function - Vitamin D deficiency contribute to the development of multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, and other so-called “autoimmune” diseases, where the body’s immune system attacks its own organs and tissues. Vitamin D supplements help boost our body’s defenses to fight infectious disease, such as tuberculosis and seasonal flu.

Vitamin D may fight disease

In addition to its primary benefits, research suggests that vitamin D may also play a role in:

• Reducing the risk of multiple sclerosis (MS). A 2018 review of population-based studies found that low levels of vitamin D are linked with an increased risk of MS.
  Multiple Sclerosis
  A person’s genetic background plus environmental factors including inadequate vitamin D and UVB exposure have been increase risk of multiple sclerosis (MS). Rates of MS were much higher far north (or far south) of the equator than in sunnier climates, and that geographic regions with diets high in fish had lower rates of MS. Higher vitamin D levels of persons with MS have been associated with reduced disease activity and progression. Genetically determined low levels of vitamin D predict higher risk of multiple sclerosis.
  
  
• Decreasing the chance of heart disease. Low vitamin D levels have been linked to increased risk of heart diseases such as hypertension, heart failure, and stroke. But it’s unclear whether vitamin D deficiency contributes to heart disease or simply indicates poor health when you have a chronic condition.
  
  
• Heart disease - The heart is basically a large muscle, and like skeletal muscle, it has receptors for vitamin D. Immune and inflammatory cells that play a role in cardiovascular disease conditions like atherosclerosis are regulated by vitamin D. The vitamin also helps to keep arteries flexible and relaxed, which in turn helps to control high blood pressure. Vitamin D supplementation lowered the risk of heart attack, stroke, or deaths from cardiovascular disease.
  
  
• Reducing the likelihood of severe illnesses. Although studies are mixed, vitamin D may make severe flu and COVID-19 infections less likely. A recent review found that low vitamin D levels contribute to acute respiratory distress syndrome.
  
  Flu and the Common Cold
  The flu virus wreaks the most havoc in the winter, abating in the summer months. Suggesting that vitamin D may be the seasonal stimulus. Vitamin D levels are lowest in the winter months. The active form of vitamin D tempers the damaging inflammatory response of some white blood cells, while it also boosts immune cells’ production of microbe-fighting proteins. The low vitamin D levels may also increase risk of or severity of novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) infection. When it comes to limiting risk of COVID-19, it is important to practice careful social distancing and hand washing.
  
  Supporting immune health. People who do not have adequate vitamin D levels might be at increased risk of infections and autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, type 1 diabetes, and inflammatory bowel disease.
  
  
• Other Autoimmune Conditions
  The Vitamin D and Omega 3 trial (VITAL) found that taking vitamin D supplements for five years, or vitamin D supplements with marine omega-3 fatty acids , reduced the incidence of autoimmune diseases by about 22%. Autoimmune conditions observed included rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, polymyalgia rheumatica, and autoimmune thyroid diseases (Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, Graves’ disease).
  
  Type 1 Diabetes
  Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is another disease that varies with geography— T1D rates are lower in sunnier areas. Vitamin D may play a role in T1D: children, who regularly received vitamin D supplements during infancy have a nearly 90% lower risk of developing type 1 diabetes than those who did not receive supplements. However, approximately 40% of T1D cases begin in adulthood. People with high levels of serum vitamin D have lower risk of developing T1D in adulthood than those with the lowest levels.
  
  Tuberculosis
  Before the advent of antibiotics, sunlight and sun lamps were part of the standard treatment for tuberculosis (TB). More recent research suggests that the “sunshine vitamin” may be linked to TB risk. Several case-control studies, when analyzed together, suggest that people diagnosed with tuberculosis have lower vitamin D levels than healthy people of similar age and other characteristics.
  
  
• Risk of premature death - A promising report in the Archives of Internal Medicine suggests that taking vitamin D supplements may reduce overall mortality rates: A combined analysis of multiple studies found that taking modest levels of vitamin D supplements was associated with 7% reduction in mortality from any cause.
  
  
• Cognitive decline - A large cohort study of more than 307,000 White European participants found a 25% increased risk of premature deaths from any cause in those who had vitamin D blood levels of 25 nmol/L (10 ng/ml), compared with those who had 50 nmol/L (20 ng/ml) (the National Academy of Medicine cites a vitamin D blood level of 50 nmol/L as adequate for most people). Similar increases in risks were seen for deaths due to cardiovascular disease, cancer, and respiratory disease, and risks increased sharply among those with even lower levels of vitamin D.
  
  
• Vitamin D may regulate mood and reduce depression
  Research has shown that vitamin D might play an important role in regulating mood and decreasing the risk of depression.
  
  
• Vitamin D might support weight loss
  People with higher body weights have a greater chance of low vitamin D levels.

Ultraviolet Light

Vitamin D3 can be formed when a chemical reaction occurs in human skin, when a steroid called 7-dehydrocholesterol is broken down by the sun’s UVB light or so-called “tanning” rays. The following are conditions that decrease exposure to UVB light lessen vitamin D absorption:

• Use of sunscreen; correctly applied sunscreen can reduce vitamin D absorption by more than 90%.
  
• Wearing full clothing that covers the skin.
  
• Spending limited time outdoors.
  
• Darker skin tones due to having higher amounts of the pigment melanin, which acts as a type of natural sunscreen.
  
• Older ages when there is a decrease in 7-dehydrocholesterol levels and changes in skin, and a population that is likely to spend more time indoors.
  
• Certain seasons and living in northern latitudes above the equator where UVB light is weaker.
  
• In the southern hemisphere, residents of Buenos Aires (Argentina) and Cape Town (South Africa) make far less vitamin D from the sun during their winter months (June through August) than they can during their spring and summer months.The body stores vitamin D from summer sun exposure, but it must last for many months. By late winter, many people in these higher-latitude locales are deficient.

Note that because ultraviolet rays can cause skin cancer, it is important to avoid excessive sun exposure and in general, tanning beds should not be used.
If one does not receive enough ultraviolet sun exposure over an extended period, a deficiency may arise.

People at risk of vitamin D deficiency

Several factors can affect your ability to get adequate vitamin D from sunlight alone.

You may be less likely to absorb enough vitamin D from the sun if you:

• live in an area with high pollution
  
• use sunscreen
  
• spend most of your time indoors
  
• live in a big city where buildings block sunlight
  
• have darker skin (The higher the levels of melanin, the less vitamin D your skin can absorb.)

These factors can increase your risk of vitamin D deficiency. That’s why it’s important to get some of your vitamin D from non-sunlight sources.
You should taking a daily supplement with vitamin D throughout the year.

Other people at high risk of vitamin D deficiency include:

• People with inflammatory bowel disease (ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease) or other conditions that disrupt the normal digestion of fat. Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that depends on the gut’s ability to absorb dietary fat.
  
• People who are obese tend to have lower blood vitamin D levels. Vitamin D accumulates in excess fat tissues but is not easily available for use by the body when needed. Higher doses of vitamin D supplementation may be needed to achieve a desirable blood level. Conversely, blood levels of vitamin D rise when obese people lose weight.
  
• People who have undergone gastric bypass surgery, which typically removes the upper part of the small intestine where vitamin D is absorbed.

Conditions resulting from prolonged vitamin D deficiency:

Rickets: A condition in infants and children of soft bones and skeletal deformities caused by failure of bone tissue to harden.

Osteomalacia: A condition in adults of weak and softened bones that can be reversed with supplementation. This is different than osteoporosis, in which the bones are porous and brittle and the condition is irreversible.

Did You Know?

Catching the sun’s rays in a sunny office or driving in a car unfortunately won’t help to obtain vitamin D as window glass completely blocks UVB ultraviolet light.

What are the symptoms of vitamin D deficiency?

The symptoms of a vitamin D deficiency in adults may include:

• tiredness, aches, and pains
  
• severe bone or muscle pain or weakness
  
• stress fractures, especially in your legs, pelvis, and hips

A healthcare professional can diagnose a vitamin D deficiency by performing a simple blood test. If you have a deficiency, your doctor may order X-rays to check the strength of your bones.
If you receive a diagnosis of vitamin D deficiency, a healthcare professional will likely recommend that you take vitamin D supplements. If you have a severe deficiency, they may instead recommend high dose vitamin D tablets or liquids.


See One More B12 plus, which combines 7 different vitamins (Vitamin B12 and other three B Vitamins, Vitamin C, Vitamin D and Vitamin E) and One More Dekamin, which contains (Vitamin D3, Vitamin K2, Magnesium and Vitamin C) is the basis of what our body needs to be healthy.