Are you feeling the effects of aging? If so you may at some time be told to check your vitamin D level. Vitamin D has recently become a very popular vitamin as a cure-all supplement (until another takes it place.) I think of vitamin D as a nutrient looking for a disease. So, the two have yet to meet ( in my opinion). Vitamin D is associated with strength and bone health primarily for children. However, more research is needed.
This is what we think we know: In the field of nutrition, this may change overnight.
The precursors for vitamin D are reduced as we age. By age 70, our ability to produce vitamin D is about half of what it was at age 20. D is in scarce supply in our regular diets. Most milk and some juices, milk alternatives and cereals are fortified with D, but other dietary sources — fatty fish like mackerel and sardines, and some mushrooms — aren’t exactly a staple in most American diets. As a result, nearly 1 in 4 people in the U.S. have inadequate blood levels of vitamin D3, the most active form.
In one study of adults 50 and older, all of whom had recently fractured bones, 43 percent were deficient in both calcium and vitamin D. Presently the world has turned to taking supplements in “megadoses” to meet the recent claims that vitamin D can be the cure-all for all the recent diseases like Parkinson’s disease, cognitive decline, Alzheimer’s disease, heart disease – in other words, maybe vitamin D has found its disease. Not so fast!!
It is not necessary to take most vitamins at megadose levels (unless ordered by your doctor).
But… How much do you really need?
Before you pick up a vitamin D supplement, it makes sense to have a conversation with your doctor. Vitamin D can interact with heart medications, including statins and diuretics. Dietary guidelines call for 600 international units (IUs) daily of vitamin D3 (and at least 800 after age 70). So that’s a solid place to start. Look for vitamin D3, which is more efficiently utilized by the body than D2. The Tolerable Upper Intake is 4000 IU per day for adults. Many people are prescribed higher levels depending on a latest study they read from a headline in a supermarket magazine; however, please check with your doctor, health coach or registered dietitian.
Since we also manufacture vitamin D from cholesterol and from the sun, we can count on that source somewhat depending on your exposure.
Ways to Improve Vitamin D Status – Source:
Judith E Brown.Nutrition Now, 7th Edition
Eat salmon once a week
Choose a vitamin D-fortified orange juice when I buy juice
Take a vitamin supplement (400-600 IU/day )
Exercise or walk in sunshine for 10 minutes three times a day with some direct skin exposure to the sun.
FOOD, FACTS and FADS 