Vitamin D is manufactured by the body when the skin is exposed to the sun. Without vitamin D, calcium cannot be absorbed, and the body is forced to take calcium from the bones, making them more fragile and apt to fracture. Vitamin D is also important in maintaining a necessary level of phosphorus in blood, which is also a mineral necessary to bone health. Research has discovered that in addition to bone health, vitamin D controls genes, some of which are associated with cancers, autoimmune diseases, infections, and even schizophrenia. A study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine found that “low levels of vitamin D were associated with a doubled risk of death overall and from cardiovascular causes in women and men (average age 62)….” Poor breast cancer outcomes have been linked to low levels of vitamin D, according to Canadian researchers, and from the Netherlands a study of an aging population discovered a relationship between vitamin D deficiency and depression. Cause and effect is not proven in these cases, but there appears to be a correlation. Postmeno-pausal women taking 1,100 IU of vitamin D plus 1,400 to 1,500 mg of calcium per day reduced their risk of nonskin cancers by 77% after 4 years. Evidence is pointing to increasing the recommended daily dose to 1,000 IU per day for adults. How much sun is needed? About 10 to 15 minutes of sun on the arms and legs a few days a week will generate all the vitamin D needed.
(Source: Harvard Women’s Health Watch, Volume 16, Number 1, September 2008)
