Vitamin D and why we should be soaking up more of it.

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Vitamin D Blog

Vitamin D already has its own fame.

Everyone knows we get it from the sunshine and it helps make strong bones and teeth. However, there is SO much more to it and we are slightly obsessed with it. We can’t help but want to give Vitamin D more exposure. 

Let this soak in a little...

We have Vitamin D receptors ALL over our body (meaning places where it needs to land and do good work). Not just the bone cells but the immune cells, muscle cells, the gut, brain, ovaries, placenta, the testes and uterus, just to name a favourite few.  And there's good reason for this - Vitamin D works throughout the WHOLE BODY. We virtually need it for everything.

Did you know?

  • It's critical in supporting the health and function of our immune system. It supports both our innate (natural) and acquired (developed) immunity, which means it helps to balance and regulate our entire immune function. This includes helping to prevent and manage autoimmune diseases.
  • It has been an emerging front runner in the race to solve the COVID-19 puzzle – after Swiss data revealed supplementation of the vitamin can not only prevent severe symptoms of the viral respiratory illness but also reduce the severity of transmission & mortality.
  • Vitamin D protects against influenza and other winter respiratory illnesses and reduces wheezing in children.

We don't know about you, but given the 'viral' world we now live in, all that should be reason enough to make sure you are getting enough.

But wait, there is more…

  • It acts as an anti-inflammatory.
  • It helps to relieve anxiety/depression and OCD conditions that are fast becoming an epidemic themselves. This is due to the hormone action of it (it’s actually a hormone not a vitamin – just to throw that in there) – so it helps us make cortisol, serotonin, oestrogen & thyroid hormones.
  • Vitamin D deficiency is a global health disease. More than 1 billion children & adults are deficient.

Make sure you're covered. 

Whilst there are definitely some foods that are high in Vitamin D, as most of us know, it is best obtained from sunlight exposure.  However, spending time in the sun does not always guarantee you are getting what you need. There are a number of factors that contribute to lower levels of Vitamin D in certain groups of people and may land them in the deficient or sub-optimal category.

  • If you are vegetarian or vegan.
  • If you are magnesium deficient.
  • If you have naturally darker or pigmented skin.
  • If you have a pre-existing autoimmune condition - such as endometriosis, eczema, psoriasis, thyroid disorders, and allergies.
  • If you have digestive disorders - IBD, Crohn's disease, Coeliac disease, SIBO & malabsorption.
  • If you take a lot of pharmaceutical medications.
  • If you are peri or post-menopausal. 
  • For babies & children. 
  • If you are overweight.
  • Genetic Factors (which now thankfully, can be tested).

It’s so important to make sure you have it covered when it comes to this critical vitamin. Aim to maximise your sun exposure (safely), ensure you have balanced nutrition, and seek to have your Vitamin D levels assessed  by your GP and naturopath (both use different testing tools)  - particularly if you fall into one of the above categories.  

Can you see now why we want to talk about it so much? And luckily, we do! In A Super Solid Start it even has it’s own lesson, to teach you how to ensure you can get plenty of it into bub (as well as your yourself).

P.s Mushrooms love Vitamin D just as much as we do.

 

References:

1. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18689389/

2. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32397511/

3. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35113901/

4.https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2770157

5.https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32397511/

6.https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32941512/

7. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3738435/

8. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28202713/ 

9. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26521023/

10. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26680471/

11. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23636546/ 

12. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28477545

13. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3356951

14. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29030989