Health Benefits of Vitamin D

Vitamin D Deficiencies

Health magazine had a great article about Vitamin D. According to Cedric Garland, a doctor of public health, “We could prevent 150,000 cases of cancer annually if we could just increase vitamin D to optimal levels.” A recent report indicated that more than a third of all women fail to get enough D for healthy bones – and more than 75% of us lack the higher amounts needed for the vitamin to do its disease-fighting best.

The most significant source of D is sunlight. Our bodies produce D with exposure to ultra-violet radiation, but because we use sunscreen so frequently now and also avoid the sun, our D levels are very low.

The proper level of Vitamin D may substantially cut the risk of breast, colon, prostrate, and ovarian cancers, according to government research. Low levels of D may cause you to overeat also. Apparently low levels of D cause a dip in leptin, a hormone that regulates appetite.

Vitamin D is thought to help lower blood pressure and regulate hormones that affect blood vessels and the muscles of the heart. Low vitamin D levels may be lined to seasonal affective disorder. Researchers believe that vitamin D helps keep the brain flush with serotonin (“happy hormone”).

Vitamin D may help decrease your chances of picking up the bug that’s going around the office and the schools. One study showed women who took 800 IU of Vitamin D were three times less likely to develop colds of the flu. Vitamin D seems to interact in a protective way with genes that raise the risk for diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS). In a Harvard University study there was a 40% lower risk of MS in women who took a daily supplement of at least 400 IU of vitamin D.

Vitamin D helps your body absorb calcium and phosphorus minerals that enhance bone strength. A recent study found that, regardless of their calcium intake, women who added 482 to 770 IU of vitamin D reduced their risk of fractures by up to 20%.

Dr Oz says taking calcium plus vitamin D will help reduce high cholesterol. When overweight women with low calcium intake (less than 800 mg a day) took this combo supplement, their cholesterol numbers improved more than the numbers of people who didn’t tke the supplement. In fact, supplement takers’ cholesterol got better regardless of weight loss. Dr. Oz says to take 1200 mg of calcium a day and 1,000 IU of D-3 but split it into two doses.

Want to know the safest way to get more Vitamin D in your in life? Read our post Safely Avoid Vitamin D Deficiencies – Sun Exposure

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