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Vitamin D Benefits

Benefits Of Vitamin D

Vitamin D has gotten a lot of press over the past few years, and for good reason. It was thought to be primarily for utilization of calcium and bone health. We now know that it does a whole lot more than that.

We now know that Vitamin D deficiency is linked to the following disease conditions:

  • Osteoporosis
  • Cardiovascular disease
  • Cancer
  • Autoimmune diseases
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Pain
  • Loss of Cognitive function
  • Decreased strength
  • Increased rate of all-cause mortality

And we’re learning that Vitamin D deficiencies may be behind even more illnesses, even the flu.

A study published in the Cambridge Journal of Epidemiology and Infection suggests that the seasonality of flu epidemics (in the winter time when there is less sunlight) may be due to corresponding low levels of Vitamin D at this time of year.

Here are some facts about Vitamin D deficiency reported in the Journal of Integrative Medicine (Feb-Mar, 2010).

  • “Deficiency of vitamin D is now recognized as a pandemic, with more than half of the world’s population at risk.”
  • Approximately 50% of the healthy North American population and more than 80% of those with chronic diseases are vitamin D deficient.
  • 80% of healthy Caucasian infants are vitamin D deficient. (And the rate of vitamin D deficiency tends to be greater in African American and Hispanic children).
  • Those with vitamin D deficiency experience 39% higher annual healthcare costs than those with normal levels of vitamin D.
  • Suggested levels of vitamin D as measured by 25(OH)D3 is:
    Caucasians 125 – 175 nmol/l = 50 – 70 mg/dl
    Hispanics 100 – 150 nmol/l = 40 – 60 mg/dl
    African Americans 80 – 120 nmol/l = 32- 48 mg/dl
  • Prolonged intake of 10,000 IU of supplemental vitamin D3 “is likely to pose no risk of adverse effects in almost all individuals.”
  • A loading dose of supplemental vitamin D3 of 10,000 IU/day for 3 months and maintenance dose of 5,000 IU/day “is not enough for most people in northern climes.”
  • The maximum safe levels for vitamin 25(OH)D3 in the blood is 275 nmol/l (100 mg/dl).