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Vitamin D Delivers Every few months, I pick one health issue that stands out from everything else. As I sit down and reflect on what I've learned from different seminars, journals and books that I've read, I realize that for 2005, that one issue has to be the role of vitamin D. Typically we think of vitamin D as vital for bone growth, but it has so many more uses. It plays a role in preventing high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, cancer, arthritis, osteoporosis and auto-immune problems. I never used to check blood levels of vitamin D for clients, but routinely do so now. I have found that the vast majority of people are deficient in vitamin D. Our intake of vitamin D comes from diet and sunlight. When the skin is exposed to ultraviolet light, it creates a reaction in the body that makes vitamin D. How much vitamin D is produced depends on skin color, latitude, age, time of year and diet. Generally, about 15 - 20 minutes a day on your face, arms and hands will produce about 200 IU. If you wear a bathing suit and get several hours of exposure in a day without suntan lotion, you will produce about 5,000 - 10,000 IU per day.* (The U.S. RDA is 400 IU per day.) You can guess where those of us who live in the Northwest and use suntan lotion stand. We benefit from vitamin D in relation to high blood pressure and heart disease. It is common to see blood pressure increase in the winter and decline in the summer and increase at greater distances from the equator. I have seen several cases of high blood pressure that were unresponsive to many therapies. When individuals supplemented with 4,000 IU per day of vitamin D, their blood pressure returned to normal. Vitamin D is definitely worth checking into for people who can't lower their blood pressure. As far as cardiovascular disease, a study demonstrated that the risk of heart attack was twice as high for people with low vitamin D (less than 34 ng/mL) than those with normal levels. Vitamin D is also very helpful in treating diabetes and blood-sugar problems. Several studies demonstrated that taking about 1,300 IU of vitamin D per day for 30 days changed insulin levels by almost 25 percent. Most remarkable was one large study done on infants and children who supplemented with 2,000 IU of vitamin D per day. The results showed an 80 percent reduction in type 1 diabetes. I have also personally seen vitamin D make a change in blood-sugar levels almost immediately. Several studies have shown that a lack of vitamin D can lead to an increased risk of cancer, particularly that of the breast, colon, prostate, bladder and stomach. A 2002 article in the journal Cancer estimated that adequate exposure to ultraviolet light and/or supplemental vitamin D could save more than 23,000 lives per year in the U.S. In the case of multiple sclerosis (MS), the number of cases is highest in the Northern Hemisphere and almost non-existent in the equatorial areas. Several researchers have attributed this to ultraviolet light and the production of vitamin D. In one study in the U.S., giving MS patients 5,000 IU of vitamin D per day resulted in a moderate decrease of their symptoms. The RDA for vitamin D is high enough to prevent diseases such as rickets — but it is not high enough for optimal health. My recommendation for vitamin D is the following: If you do not go out in the sun and/or wear sun block when you are outside, then you most likely will need about 2,000 - 3,000 IU per day as an adult (1,500 - 2,000 IU for children three to ten years old). These are very safe levels. If you are in the sun for at least an hour a day, and you are getting tan on your arms, legs and face, then most likely you don't need any supplemental vitamin D. If there is a deficiency, I have found supplementing with vitamin D to be the safest and easiest way to remedy the deficiency. I also recommend that you get a blood test to check your vitamin D status. Ask your healthcare practitioner to check for 25(OH)D (this measures the most active form of vitamin D). The optimal range is 40 - 65 ng/mL. Below 40 is a sign of mild deficiency, below 30 is worse and below 20 indicates an all-out vitamin D deficiency. In the last 50 people we tested, only two people came back with normal levels — they were both very tan (from frequent trips to California and Mexico). If you are deficient, then I recommend that you take about 5,000 IU per day for 2 - 3 days and then re-check your levels. Just a few foods have significant levels of vitamin D *To minimize skin cancer risk, use sunscreen and take 2,000 mg of fish or flax oil per day.
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