Understanding Vitamin D

You ever wonder why more people are sick during the winter? Do you ever wonder why more people are depressed around the holidays? No doubt about it that stress is a big factor in all that, but nutrition is even more important.

One huge nutrient that we are not getting enough of during that time of year is Vitamin D. We should be getting it from sunlight, but we are not getting near enough of it during that time of year. Even during the warmer times of year we are wearing sunblock which actually blocks out over 98% of Vitamin D.

This crucial nutrient is responsible for so much more than just bone density. Deficiency has been linked to type 1 diabetes, autism, mental illness, depression, depressed immune system, inadequate athletic performance and even cancer.

For some reason the FDA keeps the RDA at 400-800 iu’s which is far below what we should be taking. Adults should supplement with about 5000 iu’s and kids between 1000-3000 iu’s. It is important to check blood levels to ensure proper dosing. When analyzing blood work, normal values are at 30-100 ng/ml but should really be 50 ng/ml minimum and closer to 100ng/ml for optimum. More people are below 30 ng/ml than what we may think.

That is why it is important to get your levels checked and begin supplementing with Vitamin D for great Health. We carry an excellent and inexpensive source in our office and can steer you in the right direction to have your levels checked. Also, for more information please visit www.vitamindcouncil.org

Yours in Health,

Dr. Brett Wood, DC