A recent study found that test participants who ingested a vitamin D fortified yogurt drink experienced a significant improvement in blood sugar levels, waist circumference and body mass, compared to those who ingested only the plain yogurt. 

In another unrelated study, a correlation between vitamin D and gastrointestinal homeostasis was established. The association appears to involve a relationship with signaling between the natural occurring flora found in the GI tract, the host and the vitamin D pathway.

As more and more scientific evidence emerges, vitamin D supplementation confirms that currently recommended daily allowances (RDA) of vitamin D are grossly insufficient for young and old alike.

Under summer conditions it is frequently possible to generate about 20,000 units of vitamin D by exposing your skin to the sun. That fact makes the following recommendations seem more in line with reality. The problems with relying on the sun are many including: over exposure leading to skin cancer; dark skin, which decreases your body's ability to generate vitamin D; inconsistent exposure to sunlight on a daily basis; and living in the Northeast, where 6 months or more out of the year we are unable to absorb vitamin D from natural sunlight. 

Currently, the U.S. RDA for vitamin D is 400 IU (international units) for the majority of the population. (IU is frequently shortened to just “units.”) This dose was recommended to prevent rickets, which works well, but does nothing to give the far more important protection from cancer, heart disease and infections.

To achieve healthy blood levels, most adults will need about FIVE THOUSAND units of vitamin D every day. Interestingly, the majority of people are taking vitamin D are taking 1,000 units, and they believe they are taking “high” doses. Don’t fool yourself, as an adult, you likely need about 5,000 IU’s a day.

Some also worry that if they are in the sun that they will overdose on vitamin D. However this is not typically the case, and here’s why: When you’re exposed to the sun, the UVB rays cause vitamin D to be produced in your skin while the UVA rays in the sunlight will tend to destroy excessive levels of vitamin D circulating in your body. It is somewhat of a natural failsafe mechanism that prevents overdosing.

HOWEVER, please understand that about 10 percent or more of the people reading this needs significantly more than 5,000 units. I have seen people requiring over 30,000 units of vitamin D a day to reach therapeutic levels of 25 hydroxy D in their blood. Please remember that the ONLY way to know for sure is to get your blood level tested.Based on the most recent research, the current recommendation is 35 IU’s of vitamin D per pound of body weight. So for a child weighing 40 pounds, the recommended average dose would be 1,400 IU’s daily, and for a 170-pound adult, the dose would be nearly 6,000 IU’s.

However, it’s important to realize that vitamin D requirements are highly individual, as your vitamin D status is dependent on numerous factors, such as the color of your skin, your location, and how much sunshine you’re exposed to on a regular basis. So, although these recommendations may put you closer to the ballpark of what most people likely need, it is simply impossible to make a blanket recommendation that will cover everyone’s needs.

So how do you ensure optimal vitamin D levels for yourself, your child, and aging parents?
The only way to determine the correct dose is to get your blood tested since there are so many variables that influence your vitamin D status. You can either get this done at your doctor's office or my practice, Lifestyle Nutrition, works with Metametrix Clincial Laboratory enabling me to do Vitamin D testing. Metametrix measures 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-OH-D). Within hours, vitamin D from sunlight and diet is removed from circulation and recirculates again a few hours later as 25-OH-D. This form has the longest half life, about three weeks.

It is important to realize the difference between what conventional medicine considers to be “normal,” versus what is optimal. The “normal” 25-hydroxyvitamin D lab range is between 20-56 ng/ml. This conventional range is really a sign of deficiency, and is too broad to be ideal. In fact, your vitamin D level should never be below 32 ng/ml, and any levels below 20 ng/ml are considered serious deficiency states, increasing your risk for as many as 16 different cancers and autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis, just to name a few.

The OPTIMAL value that you’re looking for is 50-70 ng/ml. This range applies for everyone; children, adolescents, adults and seniors.

These ranges are based on healthy people in tropical or subtropical parts of the world, where they are receiving healthy sun exposures. It seems more than reasonable to assume that these values are in fact reflective of an optimal human requirement.

Only Supplement with the Right Kind of Vitamin D
There are two things you need to be aware of when you choose to use an oral vitamin D supplement and that is the quality of the supplement and that there are two types – one is natural and one is synthetic.

• The natural one is D3 (cholecalciferol), which is the same vitamin D your body makes when exposed to sunshine
  
  
• The synthetic one is vitamin D2, which is sometimes called ergocalciferol
  

Once either form of the vitamin is in your body, it must be converted to a more active form. Vitamin D3 is converted 500 percent faster than vitamin D2, and is clearly a better alternative.

Vitamin D2 also has a shorter shelf life, and its metabolites bind with protein poorly, making it less effective. Studies have even concluded that vitamin D2 should no longer be regarded as a nutrient appropriate for supplementation or fortification of foods (although it continues to be used). So if you choose to use vitamin D supplements make sure it is in the form of vitamin D3.

I recommend NutraMetrix Isotonix Vitamin D, which is a high-quality supplement superior for its delivery and absorption. NutraMetrix Isotonix Vitamin D with K2 contains vitamin D3, the metabolically active form of vitamin D, along with vitamin K2, a form of vitamin K which supports vascular health and calcium utilization. Vitamin D plays an important role in bone health, heart health and immune support, while working with vitamin K to support normal absorption of calcium and promote healthy arteries. 

Vitamin K is included in nutraMetrix Isotonix Vitamin D with K2 because of its unique partnership with vitamin D. Vitamins K and D work together to support calcium absorption and utilization. Vitamin K supports the normal delivery of calcium to the bones and promotes healthy arteries.

Isotonix dietary supplements are delivered in an isotonic solution. This means that the body has less work to do to obtain maximum absorption of the nutrients. The isotonic state (drinkable form) of the suspension allows nutrients to pass directly into the small intestine and rapidly absorb into the bloodstream. With Isotonix products, little nutritive value is lost, making the absorption of nutrients highly efficient while delivering maximum results.

Questions or would like to schedule a time to have your vitamin D levels tested? 
Alissa C. Robertson, MS, RD
[email protected]
(802) 999-5684

Sources:

1. Daily consumption of vitamin D– or vitamin D + calcium–fortified yogurt drink improved glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes: a randomized clinical trial


2. Gut microbiota, probiotics, and vitamin D: Interrelated exposures influencing allergy, asthma, and obesity?

Researchers have found that those with Crohn’s disease have a distinct difficulty absorbing fat soluble vitamins, including vitamin D. These individuals have therefore tend to be very prone to vitamin D deficiency - especially those individuals living in the Northeast or who

Taking a Vitamin D supplement like NutraMeterix Isotonix Vitamin D, which contains vitamin D3 and the fat soluble vitamin K2, may prove to be beneficial in individuals with Crohn's disease and many other gastrointestinally challenged patients.

Source: Use of a novel vitamin d bioavailability test demonstrates that vitamin D absorption is decreased in patients with quiescent crohn's disease

There is no doubt that Vitamin D is the "hot" topic when it comes to health and wellness. Vitamin D has been shown to prevent osteoporosis, depression, prostate cancer, breast cancer, and even effects diabetes and obesity. The vitamin has been said to be the single most underrated nutrient in the world of nutrition. Most likely this is because we can make it naturally from the sunlight and quite frankly, pharmaceutical companies cannot sell sunlight. We can, however, take vitamin D supplements, but absorption of pill-form supplements is still widely debated. The truth is, most people don't know the facts about D and health. So here's an overview to make sure you're staying up to speed on quite possibly the biggest secret in health and wellness.

1. Vitamin D is produced by your skin in response to exposure to ultraviolet radiation from natural sunlight.
2. The healing rays of natural sunlight (that generate vitamin D in your skin) cannot penetrate glass. So you don't generate vitamin D when sitting in your car or home.
3. It is nearly impossible to get adequate amounts of vitamin D from your diet. Sunlight exposure and taking a high-quality supplement is the only reliable way to generate vitamin D in your own body. Taking a vitamin D supplement during the winter months (and if you lack exposure to sunlight), is necessary to prevent deficiency and chronice disease. 
4. A person would have to drink ten tall glasses of vitamin D fortified milk each day just to get minimum levels of vitamin D into their diet.
5. The further you live from the equator, the longer exposure you need to the sun in order to generate vitamin D. Canada, the UK and most U.S. states are far from the equator.
6. People with dark skin pigmentation may need 20 - 30 times as much exposure to sunlight as fair-skinned people to generate the same amount of vitamin D. That's why prostate cancerr is epidemic among black men - it's a simple, but widespread, sunlight deficienicy.
7. Sufficient levels of vitamin D are crucial for calciuim absoprtion in your intestines. Without sufficient vitamin D, your body cannot absorb calcium, rendering calcium supplements useless.
8. Chronic vitamin D deficiency cannot be reversed overnight - it takes months of high-dose vitamin D supplementation and sunlight exposure to rebuild the body's bones and nervous system.
9. Even weak sunscreens (SPF 8) block your body's ability to generate vitamin D by 95%. This is how sunscreen products actually cause disease - by creating a critical vitamin deficiency in the body.
10. It is impossible to generate too much vitamin D in your body from sunlight exposure: your body will self-regulate and only generate what it needs.
11. If it hurts to press firmly on your sternum, you may be suffering from chronic vitamin D deficiency right now.
12. Vitamin D is "activated" in your body by your kidneys and liver before it can be used.
13. Having kidney disease or liver damage can greatly impair your body's ability to activate circulating vitamin D.
14. The sunscreen industry doesn't want you to know that your body actually needs sunlight exposure because that realization would mean lower sales of sunscreen products. You only need 15 minutes of sunlight per day (without sunscreen) to absorb enough vitamin D to prevent vitamin D deficiency. The pharmaceutical industry doesn't want you to know about vitamin D supplementation because they know this would mean loss of sales for prescription medications. 
15. Even though vitamin D is one of the most powerful healing chemicals in your body, your body makes it absolutely free (Keep in mind that for those of us who live in the Northeast, 6 months out of the year we cannot make vitamin D from exposure to sunlight. This means supplementation IS necessary). 

It turns out that super antioxidants greatly boost your body's ability to handle sunlight without burning. Astaxanthin is one of the most powerful "internal sunscreens" and can allow you to stay under the sun twice as long without burning. Other powerful antioxidants with this ability include the superfruits like Acai, Pomegranates, blueberries, etc. Try NutraMetrix Isotonix Acai - an advanced energy and antioxidant formula.

Diseases and conditions cause by vitamin D deficiency:

• Osteoporosis is commonly caused by a lack of vitamin D, which greatly impairs calcium absorption.
• Sufficient vitamin D prevents prostate cancer, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, depression, colon cancer and schizophrenia.
• "Rickets" is the name of a bone-wasting disease caused by vitamin D deficiency.
• Vitamin D deficiency may exacerbate type 2 diabetes and impair insulin production in the pancreas.
• Obesity impairs vitamin D utilization in the body, meaning obese people need twice as much vitamin D.
• Vitamin D is used around the world to treat Psoriasis.
• Vitamin D deficiency causes schizophrenia.
• Seasonal Affective Disorder is caused by a melatonin imbalance initiated by lack of exposure to sunlight.
• Chronic vitamin D deficiency is often misdiagnosed as fibromyalgia because its symptoms are so similar: muscle weakness, aches and pains.
• Your risk of developing serious diseases like diabetes and cancer is reduced 50% - 80% through simple, sensible exposure to natural sunlight 2-3 times each week.
• Infants who receive vitamin D supplementation (2000 units daily) have an 80% reduced risk of developing type 1 diabetes over the next twenty years.

Shocking Vitamin D deficiency statistics:

• 32% of doctors and med school students are vitamin D deficient.
• 40% of the U.S. population is vitamin D deficient.
• 42% of African American women of childbearing age are deficient in vitamin D.
• 48% of young girls (9-11 years old) are vitamin D deficient.
• Up to 60% of all hospital patients are vitamin D deficient.
• 76% of pregnant mothers are severely vitamin D deficient, causing widespread vitamin D deficiencies in their unborn chidldren, which predisposes them to type 1 diabetes, arthritis, multiple sclerosis and schizophrenia later in life. 81% of the children born to these mothers were deficient.
• Up to 80% of nursing home patients are vitamin D deficient.

What you can do:

Sensible exposure (approximately 15 minutes without sunscreen) to natural sunlight is the simplest, easiest and yet one of the most important strategies for improving your health. Supplementation is also extremely important to guarantee that you are getting sufficient amounts of vitamin D throughout the year. I urge you to visit the NutraMetrix website to learn more about the high-quality Isotonix vitamin D supplement I both take and endorse.  

If more people understood this information, we could drastically reduce the rates of chronic disease in this country and around the world. Vitamin D supplementation and sensibile exposure to sunlight is truly one of the most powerful healing therapies in the world, far surpassing the best efforts of today's so-called "advanced medicine." There is no drug, no surgical procedure, and no high-tech procedure that comes even close to the astonishing healing power of vitamin D.

Feel free to contact me with questions. Healthy wishes!

Alissa C. Robertson, MS, RD
[email protected]    
(802) 999-5684

New Bedford Guide has posted a new item, 'Vitamin D: The Wonder Vitamin '

By Alissa Robertson

Imagine a treatment that could build bones, strengthen the immune system, and
lower the risk for illnesses like diabetes, heart and kidney disease, high blood
pressure, depression, and cancer.  Seems unrealistic, doesn’t it?

Research suggests that such a wonder treatment already exists in the form of
vitamin D.  Vitamin D is a nutrient that ...

You may view the latest post at
http://www.newbedfordguide.com/vitamin-d-the-wonder-vitamin/2010/11/22

Vitamin D may protect asthmatics and those suffering with cystic fibrosis from an allergic response linked to the common mold, Aspergillus fumigates, suggests a new study. This environmental mold is a very widespread fungal organism that when inhaled does not normally cause any problems to the vast majority of people. However, in asthmatics and in patients with cystic fibrosis, exposure can lead to significant allergic symptoms. 

In an unrelated vitamin D study, researchers have identified vitamin D receptors (VDR) on 2776 gene positions and also found 229 genes that were activated in response to vitamin D. Vitamin D receptors are proteins that become activated by vitamin D. Activated VDR can then attach to specific sites on DNA which result in the expression of certain gene traits and/or genetic products such as enzymes. VDR binding sites were densely populated near autoimmune and cancer associated genes which may imply the importance vitamin D can play in autoimmune disease and cancer prevention.  

Source:

1. Vitamin D3 attenuates Th2 responses to Aspergillus fumigatus mounted by CD4+ T cells from cystic fibrosis patients with allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis
   
2. A ChIP-seq defined genome-wide map of vitamin D receptor binding: Associations with disease and evolution

Recently, the media has been referencing a study in which researchers have determined that calcium supplementation has now been associated with increased incidences of myocardial infarct. To those who understand the relationship between calcium, vitamin D and vitamin K, the researcher's conclusion makes sound physiological sense.

Unfortunately, what the media has neglected to mention is that this potential problem can easily be averted by always supplementing calcium with vitamin D and vitamin K. Vitamin D is necessary in order to help transport calcium into the blood stream. But once there, calcium can then find its way into soft tissues including blood vessels, thereby leading to calcification or hardening of the arteries which can then lead to cardiovascular disease.

Vitamin K plays a major role in calcium metabolism as it is responsible for activating a key protein that actively transports calcium away from soft tissues and into the bone where calcium can help strengthen bone and diminish the chances of developing osteoporosis.

This is the primary reason why I recommend Isotonix vitamins. Isotonix Vitamin D contains the important addition of vitamin K.

Source: Effect of calcium supplements on risk of myocardial infarction and cardiovascular events: meta-analysis