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Not Getting Enough Vitamin D This Winter? Here Are 6 Easy Ways To Get More Vitamin D.
Health | March 16, 2017
According to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), their latest statistics show that, “more than 90% of people with darker skin pigments (Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians) living in the United States now suffer from Vitamin D insufficiency, while 75% of the white population is deficient“.
The US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health correlates a Vitamin D deficiency with increased risks of developing common cancers, and symptoms such as fatigue, low energy levels, depression, brain fog, getting sick often, back pain, slow healing and recovery, hair loss, autoimmune diseases, hypertension, obesity and more.
What is Vitamin D?
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that is more than just a vitamin. It’s actually a hormone that works throughout your body to optimize your hormones and support a healthy immune system. Vitamin D is made from your skin’s exposure to the sun. There are two types of Vitamin D, and the one we want is D3-the same one you get from the sun.
Before we get to the 6 easy ways to increase your Vitamin D, it’s important to emphasize that getting tested is the only way to know exactly what your Vitamin D dosage should be. Vitamin D toxicity is rare but does occur with extreme doses. Too much vitamin D can cause an imbalance in other nutrients. Getting tested is the best way to know exactly how much you need. The Vitamin D Council recommends adults take 5,000 IU/daily of vitamin D, but again, I have to point out that the only way to accurately know is to test your blood.
That being said, here are 6 easy ways to get more Vitamin D this winter.
1. Get some sunlight. First and foremost, on those sunny days, get outside. “If you’re going to get it from the sun, about 20 to 25 minutes of exposure is helpful,” says Stephen Honig, MD, director of the Osteoporosis Center at the Hospital for Joint Diseases, in New York City. This time will have to be increased if you have darker skin, or live farther in the northern hemisphere.
2. Eat Salmon. Salmon is a good source of Vitamin D, containing about 450 IU’s (International Units). As a bonus, you get some great omega-3 fatty acids as well!
3. Take a high-quality Vitamin D3 supplement. I’m someone who likes to buy vitamins and then forgets to take them. I have a cabinet full of vitamin bottles that I have reached into only once or twice. Recently I came across Vitafive which delivers high quality vitamins (including vitamin D3) every single month to my door and the best part is, I don’t forget to take them. The Vitafive are gummy vitamins so I always look forward to my post breakfast and post dinner vitamin dessert. If you want to try Vitafive vitamins, click here to get 25% off your first order.
4. Drink Fortified Milk. Many dairy and non-dairy milks are fortified with Vitamin D. Read your labels and choose the one with the most IUs and that fits your individual dietary needs.
5. Eat The Yolks. Eggs are an easy way to get in some Vitamin D. Since the Vitamin D comes from the yolk, it’s important to eat the whole egg. One yolk will give you about 40IUs.
6. Cod Liver Oil. While it certainly doesn’t sound very pleasant, most cod liver oils now come flavored. One tablespoon contains about 1,300 IUs of vitamin D.
Private Member |
seattle, washington
So those two spoons of Cod Liver Oil every day Mom used to give me were not torture, but healthy vitamin D!
Private Member |
yilan city, taiwan, taiwan
haha me too, good ol’ mom was always right!
Private Member |
Me too, hated it…but I guess it was worth it.
Well played mom, well played.
Private Member |
vancouver, british columbia, canada
I was wondering how animals get Vitamin D since their skin is not exposed to sunlight. It turns out the oils on their fur produces Vitamin D when exposed to sunlight, and then when they lick themselves, they consume Vitamin D. Isn’t that amazing?! 😀
Private Member |
seattle, washington
So Zuzka should lick the dogs to get her Vitamin D! 😀
Private Member |
LOL!!! Not a very pleasant visual!
Private Member |
switzerland/, france
same goes with another vitamin (can’t remember which one) that rabbits produce in their poo (I guess their gut bacteria does)…so that ‘s why they eat them….the poo.
Private Member |
vancouver, british columbia, canada
Haha I heard about that too
Private Member |
Thank you for sharing this information.
Private Member |
I LOVE gummy vitamins, but recently went back to boring old horse pills because of the number of carbs in my gummy vitamins! Now it’s much harder to make myself take my vitamins…
Private Member |
france
Just to add my 2 cents: Sun exposure only works il you don’t wear sunblock… so it’s a balance between getting enough sun to produce your vitamin D and the amount of sun you can get without getting sunburnt (which you shouldn’t!) 😊
Private Member |
switzerland/, france
it also goes with people’s carnation. If you’re pale (think Scandinavians, Irish,Dutch people)…only very little is needed. If you’re much darker, then you need more. I read that there were cases of rachitism in people from Africa who lived in Scandinavia (not enough light overall to cross their skin barrier)
Private Member |
switzerland/, france
and now I am starting 2017 swimwear ordering! faster than getting a LGN satisfactory result. Like they say, to get a beachbody…have a body…go to the beach 🙂
Private Member |
santa cruz, ca
I recommend Cool Tan swimsuits! They are tan-through swimsuits. 😉
I have olive skin. I love the sun. The sun loves me. 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 Need lots of it. Not worried because my Italian relatives spent a lot of time in the sun growing up. They eat healthy, I eat healthy. I don’t go to tanning beds. I never burn. I’m fine. Ha!
Private Member |
yilan city, taiwan, taiwan
I was that way too, and then I started living in the Tropic of Cancer for 9 years riding scooters, turned 40 and it all started catching up! Now I live as the locals and use hats and umbrellas when its very strong. Different sun than Mediterranean.
Private Member |
santa cruz, ca
Oh that sounds so nice!! Yes, luckily I live in Santa Cruz, California where it’s definitely not sunny all the time. I love it here. It varies between cloudy, misty, foggy, full sunshine, partially cloudy, and this year VERY RAINY, year round! But because I surf, I have decided that when I lay in the sun or go outside for long periods of time, I should put a mild sunscreen on my face. I found a sunscreen that is so pretty. It is rose scented and shimmery, so it makes my skin glow. Just as a slight preventative measure, since I often surf for hours at a time and only my face, hands and feet are exposed (unless it cold and I’ve got booties on).
But I also study health and nutrition (Traditional Chinese Medicine, but also alternative and functional medicine. It’s my passion), and in my research I have found that nutrition and stress reduction are KEY in resisting sun damage. Of course genetics will be a factor, but a diet that is high in EFAs, micronutrients, water, Vitamin D, and antioxidants, have a humongous effect on how skin is affected by the sun. And whether or not cancers form.
But yes, even though I’m 27, I am feeling like I should pay b etter attention so that I can prevent premature wrinkling. I’m trying to stay positive, reduce stress, and eat healthy. I love sardines for this reason. They are so packed with nutrition. THey are like pure skin food!
I have been to the equator twice before so I totally understand what you’re talking about! In areas like that with the beating sun, so close to the sun, I definitely wore a hat so I wouldn’t have a heat stroke, especially! It was in Ecuador that I had the closest thing to a sunburn ever. But even there it didn’t go as far as hurting and peeling or anything. Just reddened. Way up in the Andes mountains. Anyway, I love what you have to share with your post. Thank you for reminding me that I won’t have my 27 year old skin forever, haha!
Private Member |
santa cruz, ca
Sardines!! With the bones! I eat a lot of sardines because their bones are rich in calcium, Vitamin D. They are very high in EFAs and very high in protein. They are low on the food chain, which means very little accumulation of mercury. They are also more abundant and, since you get so much nutrition from just two or three of them, it is much less contribution to environmental problems related to animal farming/agriculture/aquaculture/fishing.
If you think sardines are gross, just mix them with onions, scallions, mayo, herbs and spices, avocado, celery, and you’ll have a delicious salad that tastes like tuna salad. Minus the mercury. 😉 Very high in vitamin D.
Private Member |
yilan city, taiwan, taiwan
Yum! Good point FP, choosing sardines are way better for the marine ecosystem, since they are more sustainable than tuna, snapper and swordfish. Anchovies and herring are also super healthy, you can eat the bones and they are also sustainable alternatives. Just get BPA-free cans or choose fresh or pickled.