|
What is Vitamin D?
Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin found in many types of fish, egg yolks, mushrooms, and fortified foods, and can be created in the body from sun exposure. While water soluble vitamins will be excreted through the urine and sweat, fat soluble vitamins get stored in fat tissue. This is good when we want vitamins to be accessible for long periods of time, but can cause toxicity if we have too much of it. Vitamin D plays an active and important role in your health: ~ it maintains strong bones in both children and adults, which prevents osteoporosis and the risk of fractures as we age ~it plays an important role in our immune function, helping to prevent disease ~low levels have been associated with autoimmune disease, cancer, diabetes, asthma, and heart failure Do I need to take a supplement? As with every supplemental nutrient , your individual health history needs to be taken into account when deciding on your treatment plan. When discussing the possibility of supplementing your normal diet with your naturopathic doctor, they will identify things such as: ~ skin colour (skin with darker pigmentation has more difficulty absorbing vitamin D from sun exposure) ~how much sun exposure do you get? Do you consistently apply sunscreen? ~do you have a history ofor are you at risk for osteoporosis or other bone-related diseases? ~have you had your Vitamin D levels tested on blood work before? If so, what were the results? ~do you have any gut disorders (Crohn’s or celiac, as examples) that may inhibit the absorption of Vitamin D from food or supplements? Should I get tested? If you have a medical condition that impacts your vitamin D levels, your doctor has probably already tested it for you. This test will be covered by OHIP. The test will measure 25-(OH)D, which is a blood marker of the precursor to active vitamin D. If you do not have a disorder, you can still request your vitamin D to be tested on your next bloodwork; however, you will most likely need to pay out of pocket for the test (on average around $50). What do my results mean? There is still some disagreement when it comes to what optimal levels of 25(OH)D are. Anything less than 30nmol/L is considered deficient, and there is evidence that there may be potential risk at more than 75 nmol/L. Most health professionals will be satisfied seeing 40-60 nmol/L as this is both safe and effective. Remember to get re-tested in 3-4 months after you start supplementing to verify that you aren’t overdoing it. “I don’t want to get tested, I just want to take vitamin D because I feel like I need it” I hear this all the time from customers at the health food store I work at, and I try my best to educate them on the risks of supplementing (with anything, but especially fat soluble vitamins!) without an overseeing healthcare provider. Supplementing Vitamin D daily when your levels are already high in the body can cause toxicity, which may result in heart attack, stroke, kidney stones, headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or unintentional weight loss. What do you recommend? As always, I recommend seeing a practitioner who can evaluate your vitamin D levels and provide you with proper education based on your health history and risk factors. This is the best way to save your money while improving your health and avoiding health scares due to over-supplementation. Many people do not need to supplement with Vitamin D due to the factors listed above, and knowing this is going to save you money in the long run. For more information about Vitamin D, you can visit the Health Canada website here: https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/food-nutrition/healthy-eating/vitamins-minerals/vitamin-calcium-updated-dietary-reference-intakes-nutrition.html
0 Comments
|