Is Extra Vitamin D Worth Taking?

That is a loaded question, but one I get asked often for sure. We definitely are hearing a lot about vitamin D in the news, especially now with the pandemic. Let’s go over some factual information on this vitamin to make an informed decision if extra vitamin D is indeed worth taking.

Most people think of this nutrient as a ‘sunshine’ vitamin. This is pretty accurate, but might cause confusion seeing that COVID-19 numbers got high in the summer months, yet there was talk that being in the sun will help reduce the chances of contracting COVID.

Confusing? Yes…

There is some scientific reasoning behind this : A majority of us are lacking in the ‘sunshine’ vitamin believe it or not. According to the Endocrine Society, around “70% of the world’s population is D deficient” and this does include those people that live in places where sunshine is strong year-round (Experience Life, 2017).

Sun exposure accounts for almost 90% of vitamin D absorption in the body. (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2004). However, insufficient vitamin D can result from:

Winter months when UVB rays are not strong enough.
Use of sunscreen when we do go outside in the warmer months (which is important and still advised to cut down on skin cancer, however sunscreen with an SPF of 30 blocks 95% of Vitamin D production (The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 2011).
Increase of health problems (i.e. cancer, heart disease, autoimmune diseases) in our society.

Seventy percent of the world’s population being vitamin D deficient may sound extreme, but when you think about the amount of time we spend indoors, increased use of sunscreen (hinders vitamin D synthesis), and rise of obesity (some studies have shown correlation to low vitamin D levels), the statistic begins to make a little more sense. In addition, compromised gut function (i.e. celiac, Crohn’s) and certain medications can also affect absorption of vitamin D from food.

So, it does kind of make sense why COVID-19 did continue rising in the summer months. But, let’s continue to take a deeper look at vitamin D and it’s worth.

The Roles Vitamin D Plays In Our Body

Let me back up some and explain why this ‘sunshine’ vitamin is so important. For starters, essentially every cell and tissue in your body has D receptors. As you may know, its primary role in the body is to maintain normal blood levels of calcium and phosphorus, which help build bones.

However, vitamin D also plays a role in several other systems in the body that can affect our skin, brain health, blood sugar, cholesterol, hormone balance, and more. Insufficient levels of this vitamin may be attributed to certain chronic conditions such as sleep disorders, cardiovascular disease, migraines, muscle pain, fibromyalgia, depression, allergies, obesity or even autoimmune conditions like psoriasis, MS, or celiac (Experience Life, 2017).

In addition, there have been several studies showing that people may be more susceptible to sicknesses, like colds and flu, in the winter due to the lack of sufficient sun exposure to produce enough vitamin D and how vitamin D plays a role in general immune health. More recently, a retrospective cohort study in JAMA Network Open found that vitamin D deficiency was associated with a 77% increased risk of being infected with COVID-19.

I hope you are beginning to see that vitamin D is worth making sure you have an adequate amount.

Food Sources of Vitamin D

To support bone health, improve mood, boost weight loss, enhance our immune system, and more we want to have adequate levels of vitamin D in our body. Eating vitamin D-rich foods can boost your levels of the “sunshine vitamin”.

1 Tablespoon cod liver oil - 1360 IU

3 ounces of fatty fish like salmon - 645 IU

½ cup mushrooms (raw) - 366 IU

1 cup of milk (2%) - 120 IU

1 egg - 48 IU

Essentially, you can get some vitamin D through foods, but not as much as the being in the sun!

Sun Exposure

Sun exposure is definitely one of the easiest and most effective ways to meet your vitamin D needs as stated above. Modest sun exposure (five to 30 minutes, twice a week) without sunscreen is typically enough to meet your daily needs.

However, for some older adults, those with darker skin, overweight individuals, and those living in certain geographic areas (northern latitudes) may find it difficult to get enough vitamin D from sunlight alone.

Allowance of Vitamin D

So, you may be wondering what is the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for vitamin D.

400 IU: infants 0–12 months
600 IU: children and adults 1-70 years
800 IU: adults over 70 years

Based off those numbers, you would think most people would have no problem getting that amount. However, with as many vitamin D receptors in our body many believe that the recommended vitamin D3 dosage should be even higher. Most professional line of multivitamins contain around 1000IU per day.

Vitamin D Lab Testing

Whether through food or sun exposure when getting vitamin D- you might want to know what your levels are. Knowing this number is insightful to your health!

The best way to check and see where your vitamin D levels fall, is to get a blood test. Most lab centers will run this test without having to go to your doctor and the price is fairly reasonable. Just know that if you get a vitamin D panel without a doctor’s order, it will be out of pocket and not covered by insurance.

When you see a reference range on a lab report for vitamin D, it typically falls anywhere between 30.0.ng/mL – 100.0ng/mL. However, many functional and integrative practitioners (like myself at BloomRD) look at labs in more of what is considered optimal ranges. For vitamin D that level would fall between 45.0 ng/mL – 80ng/mL.

Vitamin D Supplementation

These are just two examples of Vit. D brands I have used at BloomRD

If your lab test shows a vitamin D deficiency, depending on how low your vitamin D is, your healthcare provider (i.e. doctor or dietitian) will most likely suggest taking a supplement. When it does come to supplementation, no matter how much is advised to take, you should choose a professional line and one that has the active form of vitamin D - vitamin D3. Vitamin D3 is the most bioavailable and is much more effective in raising vitamin D blood levels. Also, depending on your health condition, it will be determined which brand of vitamin D3 is best suited for you.

While it can be incredibly useful to take vitamin D in supplement form, it is not a cure all. Plus, if we do take high doses for a long period of time, this could have negative side effects and even be toxic to our body. Supplements do have their place, but we still need a well-rounded, minimally processed diet where we can get our nutrients from food.

Bottom Line:

Yes, in my opinion it is definitely worth making sure you have adequate vitamin D levels to keep your body strong, healthy, and feeling good overall. And know just because you live in a predominantly sunny part of the country and spend time outdoors, doesn’t mean you have a sufficient amount of this ‘sunshine” vitamin. It is best to get your levels checked so you really know.

Just a few last things on this amazing fat-soluble vitamin:

If choosing to drink milk, be sure the milk has some fat in it (1 – 2%) to help with the absorption of vitamin D. Since this vitamin is fat soluble, it does need some fat in the food to be absorbed.
Get retested 3 to 6 months to see if vitamin D levels have improved when supplementing.
If you have had low levels in the past, it may be a good idea to supplement in the winter months.
Should your vitamin D levels not improve, even after supplementation, you might want to get a micronutrient test done or have a genetic test run and set up an appointment with a healthcare practitioner (like myself at BloomRD) that understands how to review these labs with you to see about the best steps to take.

Sources:

https://draxe.com/nutrition/best-vitamin-d-supplement-benefits/

https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/time-for-more-vitamin-d

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/9-foods-high-in-vitamin-d

https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminD-HealthProfessional/

Meltzer DO, Best TJ, Zhang H, Vokes T, Arora V, Solway J. Association of Vitamin D Status and Other Clinical Characteristics With COVID-19 Test Results. JAMA Netw Open. 2020;3(9):e2019722.

Navya Vyas, Shilia Jacob Kurian, Debasis Bagchi, Mohan K. Manu, Kavitha Saravu, Mazhuvancherry Kesavan Unnikrishnan, Chiranjay Mukhopadhyay, Mahadev Rao & Sonal Sekhar Miraj (2020) Vitamin D in Prevention and Treatment of COVID-19: Current Perspective and Future Prospects, Journal of the American College of Nutrition.