All About Vitamin D

WHY YOU NEED MORE OF IT!

Grey skies ahead

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble (best eaten with meals and absorbs best with dietary fats) vitamin including the ‘3 D’s’ - Vitamin D1, D2 and D3.

Vit D is a vitamin that your body naturally produces when exposed to daylight, this is easier to get when the glorious sun is shining during the summer months. Being in October and heading towards darker days, it is more important to supplement this vitamin and continue receiving the health benefits you would on a sunny day.

Certain foods and supplements will contain Vitamin D, so you'll likely be consuming it without knowing. Extra supplementation however, in normal doses, will do no harm and has numerous benefits. See below how Vitamin D can help you!

Helps fight disease and infection

Vitamin D helps fight disease and infection. It is also recommended to help fight COVID alongside exercise and a healthy diet. It can play a role in reducing the risk of multiple sclerosis, lower risk of developing heart disease, reducing the likelihood of developing severe and common illnesses and supports a healthy immune system to keep infections at bay in the first place.

Mood regulator and Depression fighter

Normal levels of Vitamin D on a daily basis over a prolonged period of time have been linked to higher levels of well-being and self esteem, it can keep you feeling happy and helps regulate and stabilize your mood. This in turn can help combat depression if you do suffer with it. Studies have shown that people experiencing negative emotions that were supplemented with Vitamin D and Vitamin D only noticed an improvement in their mood, this can sometimes be as simple as having a deficiency in the first place. Try it!

Supports weight loss

It is quite common for people with higher body weight to experience some type of vitamin deficiency, commonly Vitamin D!

When following a structured training programme and following a relevant nutrition plan, supplementing with Vitamin D alongside other vitamins can assist in your weight loss journey. Research suggests that Vitamin D and Calcium may have an appetite suppressing effect, leaving you more satisfied with your food and less likely to have cravings or give in to them.

Other important functions

Vitamin D helps with absorption of calcium and phosphorus, this results in a normal functioning immune system. Keeping your body’s defense system strong and healthy ready to combat disease and infection. Alongside this, enough of this vitamin will ensure proper growth and development of bones and teeth alongside improved resistance to disease as mentioned above.

Food sources

It is worth noting some foods you can eat to get extra Vitamin D in your diet. The below foods have the vitamin in naturally and some are fortified with it:

• Sardines

• Salmon

• Tuna

• Cod Liver Oil

• Egg (Yolk)

• Beef Liver

• Mushrooms

• Some Cereals (fortified)

• Orange Juice (fortified)

• Yogurt (fortified)

Finally, how much is recommended?

The Recommended Dietary Allowances for vitamin D are as follows:

• Infants (0–12 months): 10 mcg (400 IU)

• Children and teens: 15 mcg (600 IU)

• Adults ages 18–70: 15 mcg (600 IU)

• Adults over age 70: 20 mcg (800 IU)

• Pregnant or breastfeeding women: 15 mcg (600 IU)

Vitamin D has many great health benefits. With all of the above in mind and leading into colder, darker months here in the UK and especially in windy Brighton and Hove.. It may be worth supplementing your diet with Vitamin D to continue feeling the effects of it, both through food and supps. Do some research on what best to consume based on preference and cost using the above as a guideline to your daily requirements.

Hope this helps!

Coach Dyl