Better Health from A to Z Requires D

80% of Americans are deficient in Vitamin D. That's a sad statistic because maintaining an optimal level of Vitamin D is one of the most important ways to support good health.

Vitamin D is not really a vitamin. It’s a hormone you need to help your body absorb calcium for strong bones and teeth, regulate blood sugar metabolism, thyroid health and more!

While it is true that your body can produce Vitamin D from exposure to the sun, there are  factors that affect your ability to generate and use Vitamin D.  For example, the farther you live from the equator, the less your exposure to the sun and the less D you can produce. Wearing more clothing or sunscreen decreases exposure as well. The pigment of your skin makes a difference too. The darker your skin pigment, the less Vitamin D you will generate and, in fact, the lightest pigmented people generate 6 times more Vitamin D than the darkest.  Age, weight and genetics matter too. Those over age 50 take 2 times longer to make the same amount of Vitamin D as a younger person, and when we gain weight, our ability to produce D declines as it is stored in fat tissue. 

Another important factor is your digestive health.  Vitamin D is fat-soluble which means you need to consume some healthy fat along with it to support absorption. If your digestion is poor, you will likely have trouble with absorption, so a supplement may be needed. 

Here are some other amazing abilities of Vitamin D:

·  It improves the function of your immune system (people who had severe cases of a certain virus were found to have markedly low Vitamin D levels)

·  It helps maintain healthy blood sugar levels and cardiovascular health

·  It helps your body release excess weight

·  Decreases your risk of cancer

The RDA of 400 IU is pretty low and is generally not sufficient for most people. Again, this depends on a lot of factors and, since every body is unique, it is best to get your levels checked yearly and work with a practitioner to make a plan for how to boost or maintain healthy levels of Vitamin D.  Make sure your doctor checks D 25 OH and look for a level of at least 30. However, I think that is actually too low especially if you have a health condition. Many practitioners typically prefer levels of 40 to 60.

If you have a condition like Cystic Fibrosis, you need to make sure your immune system has its full army of resources available. Make sure to ask your care team about your Vitamin D level, especially since you may have issues with absorption of nutrients and you want to optimize your D.

I always promote food first before turning to supplements to meet our nutrient needs, but in the case of Vitamin D, there are not a lot of food sources and some of them could be unhealthy to consume in large amounts- you'd have to drink an unhealthy amount of dairy milk to get enough Vitamin D.  However, foods like wild salmon and mushrooms can contribute to your overall Vitamin D, so it is always helpful to include them. 

Here is a healthy mushroom recipe to get you a dose of Vitamin D and it includes some healthy fat to increase your absorption.

Sautéed Balsamic Mushrooms

1 pound organic cremini mushrooms, cut in thick slices

1 tsp dried thyme

salt and pepper to taste (about 1/4 tsp each will work)

2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup shredded parmesan (or vegan parmesan substitute)

Heat olive oil in a large skillet and add all ingredients except cheese. 

Saute until mushrooms are soft. Stir in cheese and sauté a few minutes more to melt the cheese.  

Enjoy!

To explore YOUR Vitamin D status, grab my Vitamin D assessment and let's chat about how you can do better for your body. Email me at Michele@GoodnessGirl.com with "Vitamin D" as the subject and I'll send it your way.