What’s the Big Deal about Vitamin D Anyway?
Vitamin D is involved in almost every process in the entire human body. In fact, some research indicates that it may in fact not even be a vitamin, but rather a hormone. Vitamin D deficiency can lead to conditions as varied as diabetes, fatigue (including chronic fatigue syndrome), extreme body aches & pains/fibromyalgia, osteoporosis, obesity, high blood pressure, heart disease, depression and other mood disorders, cancer, depressed immunity and inability to fight all kinds of infections, allergies, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, seasonal cold & flu epidemics, and many others.
Can’t I get enough Vitamin D in my diet? How about the sun? Do I need a supplement?
Unfortunately it is next to impossible to get enough Vitamin D from diet. Although some foods, such as milk, have added Vitamin D, the amounts are so low as to be useless. One 8-ounce glass of milk contains only 100 IU of Vitamin D--about 1/20th to 1/50th of what you need just for maintenance each day. Cod liver oil does contain fairly high amounts of Vitamin D, but unfortunately it also contains high amounts of Vitamin A, which interferes with the absorption of D. We are designed to obtain our Vitamin D from the sun. I tell my patients: “Vitamin D deficiency is a disease of civilization.” This is because until quite recently in human history, we lived outside with very few clothes most of the year (depending on climate of course). Whatever meager shelter we had was used for sleep & not much else. The human species has evolved with the sun overhead for the past 4.4 to 6 million years. It has never made sense to me that the sun is our enemy.
“But everybody says you should wear sunscreen!”
You can’t get Vitamin D from the sun if you are wearing sunscreen.
Even before the research on Vitamin D came out, I intuitively refused to wear sunscreen except in extreme situations (for example, all day at the beach). Our ancestors either covered up with clothing or went in the shade if they started to burn. This is still the best advice--get out in the sun regularly but don’t allow yourself to burn. Stay out until you just start to “pink up”--this means that you are at your optimal Vitamin D production while doing the most minimal harm to your skin. For darker-skinned people, stay until just before you start to feel that tingle that means a burn is approaching (yes, dark-skinned people can burn). This time will obviously vary according to skin type, and in fact it is a perfect system. Very light-skinned people burn easily, but need very little sun exposure to produce Vitamin D (10-20 minutes), while very dark-skinned people will need several hours in the sun. African Americans in particular are much more likely to be Vitamin-D deficient, and (not coincidentally) suffer more often from diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease as a result.
But what about skin cancer?
Ironically, some research indicates that the overuse of sunscreen is actually an indirect cause of skin cancer. The reason is this--people who use copious amounts of sunscreen and stay out for many hours per day past their normal “burn point” are giving themselves a “double whammy”--they are preventing the production of Vitamin D by wearing sunscreen, and thus increasing their risk of all types of cancer (including skin cancer!). And at the same time they are exposing their skin to abnormal amounts of UV radiation (and no sunscreen can fully protect you from its damaging effects). So going in the sun just up to your normal tolerance level is the best advice, since it’s a self-regulating system. Skin cancer rates in women have doubled since the 1970’s and incidentally the use of sunscreen has also increased dramatically since the 1970s. Even common sense should tell you then that the use of sunscreen is not decreasing skin cancer rates at all--in fact, it’s likely to be just the opposite.
The Importance of Vitamin D Testing
I have been testing almost all patients for Vitamin D levels in my practice for more than two years, since the spate of recent research started. I have found that very few people have adequate levels of Vitamin D & the vast majority are frankly deficient. I would say that the average levels amongst my patients are in the 20-30 range, with some falling as low as 5 and others as high as 40 without supplementation.
What are normal Vitamin D levels?
Let’s start this discussion by stating that references ranges (the range of what’s considered “normal” by labs) are not written in stone. Most people assume that if their levels on a given lab test did not flag “H” (high) or “L” (low) that they are fine. However, there is a difference between levels that are within range, and levels that are optimal for excellent health.The same is true for Vitamin D. The reference range for Vitamin D at most labs was 20-100 a couple of years ago. It has since changed to 32-100, and I would not be surprised if research leads to further changes--perhaps 80-120. In any case, toxicity is not found until the 150-200 range (again, there is disagreement amongst the researchers). My therapeutic goal for most patients, both scientifically, and clinically, is 90-99. My reasoning? 90-99 is at the top end of the currently accepted reference range, yet it is nowhere near toxic. It is also where I have found that most patients feel at their very best.
So How Much Sun Do I Need And How Much Vitamin D Should I Take?
At the mid-Atlantic latitudes, during the late spring/summer months (May-September) you can get enough Vitamin D from the sun--provided that you are willing and able to spend 30 minutes to several hours in the sun three times per week (depending on skin color). This must occur between the hours of 10:00am and 2:00pm, and you must have 80% of your body exposed (think bikini), with no sunscreen. For many people this is neither desirable nor practical.In any case, you must supplement Vitamin D during the other 8 months of the year in order to keep your levels in the optimal range (90-99). Your dosage depends on many factors, and that is why it is especially important to test & retest your levels until they stabilize at the 90-99 level. I have tested, treated & retested hundreds of patients in the past two years, and I have found that the required dosage to bring levels up ranges from 5000 IU per day to 20,000 IU per day. After the levels stabilize, maintenance dosages of 2000 IU to 5000 IU are required to keep it there. Factors involved in dosing include body weight, current health condition, starting level, and digestion and absorption capabilities. Patients who need the most are often fighting cancer, Epstein-Barr virus, or other infections. D3 is the best supplement form, and your N.D can guide you to quality supplements, since not all supplements are created equal.
I have seen truly amazing turnarounds in many conditions with Vitamin D supplementation. My patients tell me that they feel so much better when their Vitamin D levels are optimal; that they feel strong & able to withstand any blows, physical or emotional. Do your body and your mind a favor and make an appointment with your N.D. to have your Vitamin D levels checked today.
Dr. Crystal Abernathy, N.D.
Naturopathic Physician
Charlotte, NC
(704) 562-9705
Drcrystal@abernathynd.com
www.abernathynd.com
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