Do You Get Enough Vitamin D?

It can be difficult to keep up with all of the new research regarding vitamin D and your health, but that doesn't mean you should give up. Just continue reading for simple tips to help you get enough of this vital vitamin. The first thing to note is that the best source of vitamin D is the sun. The sun's rays activate your body to produce vitamin D, and no matter how long you stay outdoors, you can't "overdose" on vitamin D in the sun. When your skin is exposed to the sun, UVB rays cause vitamin D to be produced in your skin, while the UVA rays tend to destroy excessive levels of vitamin D circulating in your body. Another important point to understand, you may want to take more - much more - vitamin D than what the FDA tells you. The FDA's current recommended daily allowance (RDA) for vitamin D is:

• 400 international units (IU) for infants, children and adolescents

• 200 IU for adults up to age 50

• 400 IU for adults aged 51 to 70

• 600 IU for seniors over 70

These official RDA guidelines may be outdated, as the most recent research indicates that 35 IU's per pound of body weight would be adequate vitamin D levels for any age group. That means a typical 170 pound adult should be getting 5,950 IU's of vitamin D a day, obviously quite a bit more than the FDA's RDA of 200-400 IU's per day. To calculate how much vitamin D is right for you, just calculate your body weight in pounds by 35. The resulting number will be the amount of vitamin D in IU's that you should get every day. How do you know how much vitamin D you are currently getting? A blood test is really the only way to be certain, specifically a 25 (OH) D test. You can order home tests online, or call your doctor's office and find out if they can test the level of vitamin D in your blood. Normal ranges are 20-56 ng (nanograms) per milliliter, but optimal vitamin D levels are 50-65 ng/ml. This range applies to everyone; adults, children, adolescents and seniors. The best times to check your vitamin D levels are in March when the average person is at their lowest point, and August, when at your highest. This can give you an idea if you are getting enough vitamin D, and if not, how much more you need. The best source of vitamin D is not through supplementation, but good old fashioned sunshine. If you can't get your sunshine because you work indoors or live in a cloudy location, a safe tanning bed is your next best alternative (yes, some tanning beds can be safe, despite what sunscreen/self tanner/bronzer lotion companies would like you to believe). Make sure you choose a tanning bed that uses electric ballasts rather than magnetic (ask the manager), and that the bulbs produce both UVB and UVA rays (most do these days). If you choose to orally supplement vitamin D, read the label closely so you are getting the right kind. The natural vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) is the kind your body makes when exposed to sunshine. The synthetic option is vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol).

When you take a vitamin D supplement, both forms (natural and synthetic) will need to be converted into a more active form in the body. Vitamin D3 is converted 500 times faster than vitamin D2, so is clearly the better choice. Why is it so important to get optimal levels of vitamin D? Your health depends on it! Studies are ongoing but vitamin D deficiency is now linked to a host of cancers and debilitating conditions. To mitigate your risk and enjoy the full health benefits of vitamin D, get your vitamin D levels checked and start getting adequate vitamin D today!

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