It's amazing that summer is already drawing to a close. Kids are back in school, recent vacation memories are still with us, and the surest sign that ND winter is coming...the days are already getting shorter! With the shortened days comes the decreased sun exposure and with that comes significantly lower levels of vitamin D being synthesized by your body.
Vitamin D is considered to have hormone properties and every single cell in your body contains receptor sites for vitamin D. It is imperative you maintain adequate vitamin D levels throughout the year. Vitamin D deficiency has been linked to chronic musculoskeletal pain, autoimmune diseases, osteoporosis, neurodegenerative diseases, and inflammatory disease processes.
Vitamin D should be supplemented in the D3 form. Dosing depends on your current vitamin D levels. Optimal levels are 55-60, but if you have autoimmune disease the optimal recommendations are closer to 75-80! For some people that means up to 10,000 IU of vitamin D daily! But be sure to have your blood levels tested before taking high doses of vitamin D. If you must be on high levels for any prolonged period of time your doctor should also keep an eye on your serum calcium levels and your parathyroid hormone. Some people will do quite well supplementing 1000-2000 IU daily, especially in ND winters, but this may not be a high enough dose to be effective for many people.
Vitamin D is also a great immune system enhancer and has shown promise in boosting your immune system and preventing illnesses such as the common cold, the flu, and yes even "swine flu" or the H1N1 virus.
So do yourself a favor, as the days get shorter, get in and have your vitamin D levels checked. This is perhaps one of the singular most important tests you could ever do.
