What Do You Need to Know about Vitamin D?

What you need to know about Vitamin D

I. What does Vitamin D do?
a. Calcium Absorption
b. Helps cells communicate, works like a hormone

II. Where does Vitamin D come from?
a. Made in the skin from sun exposure
i. 15 minutes/2 times per week
b. Diet
i. Vitamin D fortified foods
ii. Salmon, sardines, egg yolks and beef liver

III. How is Vitamin D made?
a. Sun or Food

IV. Deficiency
a. Rickett’s – Bones do not harden
b. Decreased Calcium Absorption
c. Cardiovascular Disease, Auto Immune Rheumatoid Arthritis, Lupus, Multiple Sclerosis, Chronic Bone, Chronic Muscle Pain, Macular Degeneration, Cancer and Increased Susceptibility to cold and flu viruses.

V. How Do I Know I’m Deficient?
a. Blood Test
b. In Canada, 97% of the population is deficient in the winter months.
c. In the United States:
d. Average daily intake in the United States is 240 IU.
e. New England Journal of Medicine 1998, 46% of patients taking multiple vitamins with 400 IU were below blood level.

VI. Sunscreen and Skin Color
a. SPF# 8 decreases UVB sun rays by 95% which reduces Vitamin D production by 95%.
b. Dark pigmented skin, such as African American, Dark Tanned decreases 4 to 10 times.
c. Tanning Bed: No UVB rays, only UVA, no Vitamin D production.

VII. Toxicity
a. Hypercalcaemia
b. Nausea, Headaches, Constipation, Kidney Stones, Mental Confusion, Heart Arrhythmia. Do not supplement additional Vitamin D in cases of Hyperparathyroidism and sarcoidosis.

VIII. How much Vitamin D do I need?
a. Recommended Daily Allowance (in International Units)

AGE DOSAGE
0 to 50 200 IU
51 to 70 400 IU
71 and Over 600 IU
b. Original Thoughts: 10,000 IU
i. That’s what a lifeguard in the sun made in a day.

IX. How Much Should I Take?
a. ALL LEVELS SHOULD BE CHECKED USING A BLOOD TEST, BY YOUR PHYSICIAN
i. HEALTHY
1. 1000 IU to 2000 IU of Vitamin D3 per day.
ii. DEFICENT
1. 5000 IU of Vitamin D3 a day.
OR
2. 50,000 IU Vitamin D2 once a week for 10 weeks; then once a month.
(This is a prescription from your physician)

http://www.craigzunkadds.com/

http://www.depsyl.com/

http://back2basicnutrition.com/

http://bionutritionalresearch.olhblogspace.com/