Vitamin D Reduces Risk of Many Conditions
Such as Heart Disease, Stroke, and Perhaps Even H1N1 Symptoms
Vitamin D seems to be all the rage this year, credited with reducing the risk of an amazing array or illnesses and conditions, including osteoporosis, and perhaps even such conditions as cancer and autoimmune, cardiovascular, and infectious diseases like H1N1 swine flu. According to a press release on November 16th by Consumer Reports Health News, "Vitamin D is shaping up to be the nutrient of the year — if not the decade."
What is Vitamin D?
Vitamin D is known as "the sunshine vitamin", because the primary source is synthesis of it in the body when exposed to sunlight. However, it is also added to many dairy and grain products, multivitamins, sold alone as a dietary supplement, and is naturally occurring in a umber of fish, like herring, salmon, mackerel, sardines, and tuna.
Why Supplement Vitamin D?
Even though Vitamin D is synthesized in the body naturally when exposed to sunlight, it can be difficult to get enough, particularly in the winter, when most of your skin is covered and the sunlight is weaker and shorter; there is even emerging evidence that wintertime is "cold and flu season" because of these lowered levels of Vitamin D.
Health professionals are beginning to recommend at least 800 IU of Vitamin D per day, well above the current official recommendation of 200-600 IU. For the immune system boosting properties, such as fighting H1N1 swine flu symptoms, as much as 10,000 IU of Vitamin D3 has been named as appropriate, although the official limit of what is deemed safe is only 2,000 IU.
Study of Vitamin D and Strokes, Heart Disease
A study was presented November 16th at the annual conference of the American Heart Association that linked healthy levels of Vitamin D with having a strong. healthy heart. Similarly, it linked Vitamin D deficiency with an increased risk of stroke and heart disease, and death from those and related conditions. Although not the first study to look at these connections, the lead researcher, Dr. Brent Muhlestein, said he believed it was the largest, looking at over 27,000 patients.
In addition to the physical benefits and risks, the study showed a strong indication that a lack of Vitamin D may lead to depression in both men and women.
photo by Bradley Stemke
Related Articles:
- Natural ways to boost immune system health - a number of easy ways to encourage a healthy immune system
- Top 5 simple ways to help prevent H1N1 Swine Flu symptoms - easy ways to beat the symptoms of H1N1 swine flu — including Vitamin D3
- Natural Ways to Prevent Swine Flu - more tips and suggestions on preventing H1N1 symptoms
- Why perhaps you shouldn't take your vitamins - discusses the benefits of getting vitamins from the diet instead of supplements
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Comments
Vitmain D is by far the body's most powerful disease fighter. To call it the 'supplement of the year, decade' is to understate its importance by a factor of thousands. Vitamin D is a steroid, not a vitamin, and deficiency in the is vital molecule is responsible for practically every majro, chronic illness in the modern world. The experts say that the healthy level of vitmain D in the blood is at least 50 ng/ml, year round. Less than 5% of Americans acheive this naturally. Doctors know almost nothing about this because the drug reps who inform them are ignorant as well. Vitamin D deficne y causes most cancers, most heart disease, asthma, autism, schizophrenia, obesity, diabetes, chronic pain, depression. miscariages, infertility, bone disease, stokes, artery disease etc etc etc. Don't belive me? Check the facts out and bring it to your doctor's attention. Do so before his/her inattention kills you.
Yikes! I think perhaps that the last sentence of the article should be re-worded?? Does Vitamin D lead to depression? or the LACK of vitamin D may lead to depression?
Thanks, PLB. It read right to me, but I reworded it to be a little more clear.
The importance of Vitamin D in our diet has been underestimated for quite some time now. Isn't the most natual way to get this essential vitamin from the sun?
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