Vitamin D

What do we know about vitamin D?
     Where do we get vitamin D?

New facts about vitamin D
     Is vitamin D safe?

What is known to each of us about vitamin D? Well, first, that if the young children have not enough of this vitamin, they are vulnerable to rickets. And when I was young, doctors were too lazy to create a less nasty source of vitamin D, than fish oil, each morning began with the formula "close eyes and open mouth". Well, clamping the nose was recommended, too, but this was for particularly squeamish.

Vitamin D is a unique substance, and not just because it is the only vitamin, which many people feel hatred from childhood. It is also generally known fact, that vitamin D is the only nutrient that is produced in our body "out of nothing", simply by the action of sunlight.

Not really, of course, out of nothing; in fact, the raw material for its production is another bugbear - the infamous cholesterol, which many people have the same hostility as to the fish oil.

However, life breaks down stereotypes, and many people now already know that the myth of cholesterol is just an invention of margarine manufacturers, who made great capitals on it. And, as a side effect, the myriad of people were poisoned extremely harmful trans fats, of which all types of margarine consist.

Some myths about vitamin D also begin slowly fading away, although in this case there were no such thing darkest secrets that cholesterol story were shrouded. But, in any case, we already know that the role of vitamin D in our lives is much more than only protection from rickets, and the principle "spend 20 minutes a day on daylight and get enough of vitamin D" does not always work and is not for all.

But let's go in order.

Well-known fact is that vitamin D is essential for calcium absorption and assimilation, and it is, perhaps, all that we knew before about the role of vitamin D. But what is this mechanism? It turns out that vitamin D increases the permeability of the intestinal epithelium to ions Ca ++, and phosphorus ions, which is also necessary for calcium absorption

But who cares about some sort of ions, you will say, and it will be a little wrong. The fact is that, apart from the ionic mechanism of calcium absorption in the intestine, there is also a mechanism for assimilation complex forms of calcium - namely, amino acid complexes, so-called "chelates" of calcium, which pass from the intestine into the bloodstream "ahead of the engine" and, accordingly, participation in the process of vitamin D is not required.

Vitamin D also stimulates the production of intestinal carrier protein required for the transport of calcium. For assimilation of chelates, this also is not necessarily because chelate compound is already a protein complex which includes one or more atoms of calcium.

That is why modern calcium supplements, which I wrote in the article "Calcium in food is not too much always"and which contain this mineral in chelated form, do not require further of vitamin D for their assimilation. This is good not only because the drugs are cheaper, but also because in this case, vitamin D contained in the body, is not distracted by absorption of these drugs; but because there is not always enough it, this is a definite plus.

However, recent studies have several extended our understanding about the role of vitamin D in calcium metabolism. It turns out that vitamin D also supports the level of inorganic calcium in blood plasma above the threshold value, which is very important, since if this level reduces, calcium becomes heavily leached from the bones. In addition, vitamin D is involved directly in the process of calcium deposition in bone and dentin, thus preventing demineralization of bones and teeth.

Elimination of vitamin D deficiency in the body is essential for the prevention of fractures in osteoporosis. Replenishment of calcium in the body is only possible with sufficient content of vitamin D in the blood!

These facts help to explain the results of studies of Australian scientists first published last year. These studies have shown that taking calcium with vitamin D is much more effective in the long term to prevent bone loss in older women than taking calcium alone. In fact, a daily intake of 1,200 mg of calcium and 1,000 I.U. of vitamin D allowed preventing bone loss during the five years that the study was conducted.

As leading manufacturers of dietary supplements necessarily track the progress of scientific thought, they immediately responded to the results of these and other similar studies.

The new formula Strong Bones PLUS along with calcium and magnesium for optimal absorption ratio of 2:1 also contains the necessary amount of vitamin D3, derived from natural sources.

What sources of vitamin D3 are natural, and why you can not just get enough of this vitamin from food, or, at worst, just out of the sunlight?

The highest amount of vitamin D is contained in egg yolk, butter, cheese, fish oil, fatty fish (salmon), caviar, dairy products, as well as the liver. However, in practice, you do not always find vitamin D in the milk and milk products, or its content will be very low (trace amounts). For example, 100 grams of cow's milk contains only 0.05 micrograms of vitamin D, so the use of milk, even fresh, can not cover our need for this vitamin (400 I.U. or 10 mcg). In addition, milk contains a lot of phosphorus, but phosphorus prevents the absorption of vitamin D.

There are also the vegetable sources of vitamin D - these are alfalfa, horsetail, nettle, parsley. Optionally, you can use them, for example, you can eat nettle soup, filled with horsetail. In winter, however, you do not find in the market such lowly vegetable. But just the winter, the need for vitamin D is highest, because we have fewer opportunities to develop the natural process of the production of vitamin D in our skin.

So, what about production of vitamin D in our skin?

If our skin is getting enough ultraviolet light, the need for vitamin D is satisfied in full. However, this requirement is not always feasible, as the amount of synthesized vitamin D depends on many factors. These are:

- spectral composition of light (we get the most effective part of the solar spectrum in the morning and at sunset);
    - pigmentation of your skin (with dark skin, production of vitamin D is less);
     - age (with aging, skin loses the ability to synthesize vitamin D);
     - vegetarian diet or a diet with low fats (low cholesterol diet);
     - atmospheric pollution (air, polluted by industrial emissions and dust, do not skip a part of the solar spectrum, necessary for the synthesis of vitamin D).

The studies of content of vitamin D in the body of the inhabitants of different countries gave a stunning result: it turned out that all over the world in temperate countries, a deficiency of vitamin D is about 60-70% (!).

This can be attributed to the very small amounts of vitamin D in foods, short daylight hours in the cold season, as well as the constant wearing. Solariums, by the way, are not a good way to replenish vitamin D in the body. Absorption of vitamin D may also decrease in diseases of the digestive system and for receiving such medicines like corticosteroids and anticoagulants.

Therefore, if you live in high latitudes, a large industrial city, or you are not enough in the open air (not to mention other factors that reduce the synthesis of vitamin D), the deficit must be replaced by other means available to you. And if you have problems with the intestines, liver and gall bladder, then the ability of absorption of vitamin D from the diet can be also reduced. During pregnancy, besides, the body's need for vitamin D also increases.

The uniqueness of vitamin D is also in the fact that it is the only substance that acts as both a vitamin and a hormone. In fact, its composition is close to steroids. His hormone-like action is manifested in many metabolic processes.

Vitamin D improves muscle strength, strengthens the immune system. By the way, its level in the blood is one of the criteria for assessing the life expectancy of AIDS patients. It provides normal blood clotting and normal functioning of the thyroid gland. It also participates in the regulation of heart rhythms and blood pressure.

It was found that vitamin D suspends the growth of cancer cells, so it can be used for prevention and treatment of breast, ovarian, prostate, brain, colon cancer and leukemia.

Today vitamin D is a "hot topic" in the medical community. It was declared a remedy for all diseases, from cancer to chronic pain. Here's the latest news:

Prevents heart attacks
   Men with low levels of vitamin D are about twice higher risk of heart attack than men with normal levels of vitamin D, - Harvard scientists say. Their theory is that vitamin D reduces inflammation, lowers high blood pressure and prevents calcifying of vessels - e.g. resists all factors that contribute to cardiovascular disease.

In the study of more than 15,000 Americans, people with low blood levels of vitamin D was 30% higher chance of high blood pressure, 47% more prone to high levels of triglycerides, and 129% higher tendency to obesity. The researchers noted that low levels of vitamin D may also be the cause of fibromyalgia, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Protects against cancer
   A team of researchers from the University of San Diego (CA) claims that intake of 2,000 I.U. of vitamin D per day may reduce the incidence of breast cancer in half and reduce the risk of colon cancer by two-thirds. Recent studies have shown that vitamin D may reduce the risk of another 17 types of cancer.

Prevents diabetes
   Finnish researchers found that men who have a lot of vitamin D in the blood, are 72% less prone to develop of diabetes type 2 after age of 40 than those with minimal levels of vitamin D. Scientists explain these results that vitamin D, apparently, plays an important role in the production of insulin.

It was also found that the lack of vitamin D in the female body during pregnancy, the child may be born with low birth weight or with type I diabetes. This may be due to the fact that vitamin D deficiency usually occurs in the second trimester of pregnancy, when there is a formation of the pancreas in the fetus, which is responsible for producing insulin.

Stimulates the brain
   According to Dutch researchers, additional intake of vitamin D can help elderly people suffering from depression or dementia. Men and women over 65 years, with a greater or lesser degree of depression, the level of vitamin D is 14% lower than their healthy peers. Among patients with Alzheimer's, those who had higher levels of vitamin D showed best results in tests for cognitive function.

It was also established a relationship between vitamin D deficiency in the mother and bipolar disorders or multiple sclerosis in a child at an older age, especially for children, who also suffer from a deficiency of vitamin D, and do not get enough sunlight, contributing to its synthesis.

It seems that there are sufficient grounds to saturate your body with vitamin D, as a prophylactic, and, if necessary, for therapeutic purposes. However, there is an opinion that excessive intake of vitamin D can lead to hypervitaminosis. What does modern science say about this?

Indeed, because vitamin D is fat soluble, it can accumulate in the body, which means that when an overdose it can expect serious problems. The main problem is the excessive concentration of calcium in the blood of an overdose of vitamin D. This may contribute to the formation of atherosclerotic plaques in the blood vessels, especially in the deficiency of magnesium in the body. Large doses of vitamin D can also cause iron deficiency, because vitamin D promotes calcium absorption in the small intestine, but calcium competes with iron in the process of absorption.

All this is true, however:

1. In the above studies, doses of vitamin D were from 1,000 to 2,000 I.U. per day, while a daily intake of 1,000 I.U. took place over five years (optimal daily dose is 400 I.U.). Any negative effects of taking these doses were not reported in the publications.

2. According to the results of expert judgment, the safe daily dose is 10,000 I.U.

3. For the treatment of rickets in children, the doses of 2,000-5,000 I.U. are used daily for 30-45 days.

4. In modern supplements of calcium with vitamin D, dose of vitamin D3 does not exceed 400 I.U. on daily intake, and in children's multivitamins, it is even lower. Calcium included in these supplements, is not in the ionic but in chelated (amino acid) form, so this is not a competition for absorption with other minerals.

5. Hypercalcemia is quite rare compared to the widespread hypocalcaemia, and mostly is associated with severe diseases.

So, prophylactic intake of vitamin D3 in a dose of 300-500 I.U. per day absolutely does not threaten your health. But long-term use of high doses of vitamin D, it is required simultaneously take vitamins A, C and E, B vitamins and calcium, so it is better to use complex products or make the appropriate vitamin program. It should also be borne in mind that some drugs impede the assimilation of vitamin D, change its metabolism or remove it from the body.

Since the diets of children generally is not ideal, for the health of children is particularly useful to take dietary supplements containing natural vitamins and minerals. The composition of these multivitamins includes also vitamin D3. Taking two or three pills a day (depending on age) completely covers the need of 7-2 year-old child not only for vitamin D, but also in other necessary for health substances.

Strong and healthy child develops and learns better. There can be no compromise - children should getting the best, because the lack of necessary nutrients for the development of a child's body can not be compensated for in adulthood.

This article is copyrighted by Alexander Yezovit. It cannot be reprinted without permission from Alexander Yezovit.

Into the catalog >>
    To the topic directory >>