Vitamin D, often referred to as the ‘sunshine vitamin’, helps regulate the amount of calcium and phosphate in the body, which are nutrients needed to keep bones, teeth and muscles healthy.
Most people create Vitamin D naturally in the warmer months from sunlight. However, in the winter months, this becomes more difficult.
You can also get Vitamin D from foods such as red meat or egg yolks. In addition, many people take dietary supplements to help their bodies create enough.
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble nutrient that plays several essential roles within your body. Its primary function is to regulate how your body absorbs Calcium and Phosphorous, two essential minerals that aid the normal, healthy development of bones and teeth.
However, it also helps facilitate good immune system function, which helps improve your body’s resistance to infection, illness and disease.
HOW DOES VITAMIN D SUPPORT YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM
Your immune system is your body’s first line of defence against infection and disease, and it has both anti-inflammatory and immunoregulatory properties.
Vitamin D supports several vital functions within the body. It helps you absorb and store calcium in your skeletal tissue and regulate the cells that build and maintain healthy bones. It helps recycle the calcium in your kidneys to be reabsorbed rather than lost when you urinate. It also helps your digestive system to absorb calcium and other critical nutrients from your diet.
Alongside its primary function, Vitamin D can help reduce the risk of developing multiple sclerosis – a debilitating condition which attacks the brain and nervous system – and can also help improve your circulation and reduce the risk of heart disease. And because of its immune-boosting properties, Vitamin D helps reduce your chances of catching flu and other viral infections.
There is evidence to suggest that Vitamin D plays a vital role in improving mental health and easing the symptoms of depression by regulating the hormones that affect our mood.
It can also be helpful when it comes to weight management. Studies have found that people taking Calcium and Vitamin D supplements were able to achieve and maintain a healthy weight more effectively than those who didn’t. It’s thought that this is because additional Calcium and Vitamin D can help suppress appetite.
BENEFITS OF VITAMIN D
Vitamin D is essential in the development and growth of the human body and creates improved resistance against diseases. Autoimmune disease risks such as multiple sclerosis are significantly reduced, and evidence suggests that Vitamin D decreases your chance of developing cardiovascular health complications such as heart disease. Vitamin D also aids in boosting your immune system overall, helping to reduce the chances of getting a common cold and flu and helping to tackle viruses quickly when you do fall ill.
Do you ever find yourself happier in the warmer weather and summer months? It has been found that Vitamin D affects your mental health and plays a role in regulating your mood.
SYMPTOMS OF VITAMIN D DEFICIENCY
Deficiency is common in Northern Europe. The most significant factor causing low vitamin D is lack of sun exposure. Between October and April, it is almost impossible for our bodies to make vitamin D in the UK, and our awareness of the dangers of UVB radiation means a lot of us cover up or wear sunscreen, meaning our levels of vitamin D drop even more.
As well as the factors mentioned above, vitamin D deficiency is also more prevalent in people who:
- Live in big cities where buildings block the sunlight
- Spend more time indoors, working night shifts for example
- Have a darker skin tone – higher melanin levels affect how much Vitamin D the skin can absorb
Some common symptoms of a deficiency include aches and pains in the body, including a general sense of feeling unwell where your immune function has dropped and severe bone or muscle pain, potentially to the point of being unable to walk upstairs.
VITAMIN D SUPPLEMENTATION TO PREVENT VIRUSES AND DISEASES
Your body makes around 90% of the Vitamin D it needs when the skin is exposed to direct UV light from sunshine, meaning you must get the remaining 10% from your diet. This can be challenging, especially for vegans, because there are very few foods that contain sufficient Vitamin D. Oily fish, red meat, liver and eggs yolks all do, but if you follow a vegan diet, these are a no-no.
Our natural, nutritional supplements can provide a perfect way of complementing your diet to help ensure that your body gets all the essential vitamins, minerals and other nutrients it needs to thrive. From multivitamin formulas that ensure you get your daily amount of a range of nutrients to single vitamin or mineral capsules to help you top-up individual shortages or address any deficiencies, we have a supplement to suit your needs.
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