VITAMIN D SUPPLEMENTS
We
evolved to make all the vitamin D we need from the sun, but most of us are no
longer running around naked in equatorial Africa. It shouldn’t come as a
surprise that many of us modern humans may be deficient in vitamin D, also known
as the “sunshine vitamin,” if we live, for example, in Northern climes covered
up over the winter months.
Does
this one vitamin really matter that much, though?
Yes,
if you want to live longer.
Vitamin
D, which is made mostly by animals, including ourselves, when we’re exposed to
sunlight, may help us enjoy a longer life based on randomized, controlled
studies. As if that weren’t enough reason to pay attention to vitamin D, it’s
also been shown to improve pain from menstrual periods and help prevent respiratory
infections.
If
you don’t get adequate sun exposure, I recommend daily supplementation with
2,000 IU of vitamin D, ideally with the largest meal of the day.
Mushrooms,
interestingly, also make vitamin D when exposed to sunlight radiation, but most
mushrooms found in the produce section of our local markets don’t have any
vitamin D because they’re grown in the dark. I also don’t recommend tanning
beds because they can be both ineffective and dangerous. (The lamps emit mostly
UVA, which increases melanoma skin cancer risk while producing less vitamin D.)
