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Vitamin-D For Deficiency?
WDI newsletter Summer 2008
RIDGEWOOD, New Jersey — Getting a “D” may wreck your school transcript, but getting enough Vitamin-D is a great way to have healthy teeth and bones, a strong immune system, and a balanced hormonal system.
Yet, recent studies indicate that many women are dangerously Vitamin-D deficient. Deficiencies reverse the many benefits of Vitamin-D, leading to heart disease, depression, diabetes, and kidney and digestive disorders. According to a new study released by the American Society of Clinical Oncology, breast cancer patients with low levels of Vitamin-D are less likely to recover from cancer, or prevent it from spreading, compared to patients who were not Vitamin-D deficient.
A simple blood test can determine if you’re not getting enough Vitamin-D. Telltale signs include muscle pain, bones fractures, sluggishness, difficulty sleeping, severe PMS, mood swings, and depression.
Sources of Vitamin-D include complex carbohydrates, eggs, dairy products, and nutrient-rich fatty fish provide Vitamin-D. But the easiest way to load up on Vitamin-D is right above our heads: daily exposure to sunlight.
Just 20 minutes of daily exposure to sunlight is enough to keep our bodies sufficiently stocked with Vitamin-D. So why are so many women Vitamin-D deficient?
The answer may be contemporary lifestyles. Whereas once we spent daylight hours outside, now we spend our days inside cars, tinted glass office towers, air-conditioned malls, at home, and either fully clothed, or slathered with sunblock. We’re just not getting enough sun.
Living on the east coast compounds the problem: the sun is only strong enough to trigger to fully absorb Vitamin-D between May and September. A good portion of the country simply lacks access to the most potent source of Vitamin-D for part of the year.
What about Vitamin-D supplements? It’s an essential way to get Vitamin-D, but only part of the solution. Research finds that our bodies synthesize different sources of Vitamin-D in different ways. While 20 minutes of direct sunlight provides 20,000 IU of Vitamin-D, that same 20,000 IU in the form of oral supplements can be toxic.
Summer is upon us, and now is the chance to load up on Vitamin-D. But don’t overdo it. Depending on your skin tone, light skin to dark skin, 15 to 40 minutes of sunlight is sufficient. You should still use sunblock whenever else you’re in the sun for prolonged periods; the safest time for your daily dose is in the early morning or late afternoon.
Women’s Health Imaging Quarterly is published four times a year by Women’s Digital Imaging of Ridgewood, New Jersey, a private practice led by Dr. Lisa Weinstock, specializing in detecting and diagnosing conditions such as breast cancer, gynecologic diseases and osteoporosis. WDI offers a comfortable, private environment, the accuracy of the most advanced diagnostic instruments, and exceptional care from compassionate, highly qualified female doctors.
© Copyright 2008 Women’s Digital Imaging of Ridgewood, New Jersey, All Rights Reserved
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