So because it's Summer, you think you are getting enough Vitamin D?

I can’t stress the importance of Vitamin D enough. This hormone (yes it’s a hormone and not a vitamin) is involved in the activity of more than 1000 genes.

It literally affects your skin, brain, bones, blood sugar and your risk of developing cancer and the likelihood of developing autoimmune conditions such as type 1 diabetes and coeliac disease.

Most people I speak with are vitamin D deficient. Including myself! (despite taking more than the recommend dose of 10 microgram per day). In this blog I will explain why you may not be getting enough of this crucial vitamin/hormone.

Are current recommendations too low?

In the UK, we recommend 10 microgram of vitamin D daily.

I have been taking 25 microgram for years and I was vitamin D deficient!

This got me thinking and I started doing some research and found this:

1) Genetic variation in an enzyme called CYP 2R1 may explain why some people are more likely to be vitamin D deficient.

CYP 2R1 converts the inactive form of vitamin D into the active hormones in the liver. I have always wondered if people with darker skin like myself, because we come form a place in the world where the sun shines a lot more than it does in the West, require additional vitamin D supplementation? My ancestors come from the Middle East. A very sunny place!

We are all unique and therefore our dietary requirements are also! That’s why I now offer personalised nutrition. DNA tests which help you find YOUR unique requirements.

Email me to hear more.

2) Robert P. Heaney, M.D., a distinguished professor of medicine, world-renowned researcher in the field of bone biology and vitamin D reports that vitamin D requirements have been miscalculated by the institute of medicine in America. Prof Heaney believes that we have underestimated the requirements of vitamin D by a factor of 10! Yes that’s right….10!

In America they recommend 5 microgram extra vitamin D in comparison to the UK so these findings still apply to this country, I believe. If you want to read more about this please click here.

You make most Vitamin D midday

You make vitamin D mostly at midday! So are you out between 11 – 3pm? Because that’s the time UVB rays are at their peak! I am hardly outside between 11 and 3pm! Are you?

Sunscreen Blocks Vitamin D Production by 95%

Sunscreen blocks 95% of vitamin D production. SPF 30 pretty much blocks UVB rays, reducing the production of vitamin D. It’s about finding a fine balance between wearing sunscreen and producing vitamin D…..

There are many more factors that affect vitamin D absorption. These include:

-Age

-Weight (the more body fat you have, the more vitamin D you may require since Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin)

-Altitude

-Skin colour

I urge you to ensure you are getting enough vitamin D. Just look at mother nature, she needs the sun to thrive! So do we.

Warmly,

Nishti

Please note that this information neither is medical advice, nor is it meant to replace the advice of your doctor or dietitian and I assume no liability for the use or misuse of this information.

So because it’s Summer, you think you are getting enough Vitamin D?

Are current recommendations too low?

You make most Vitamin D midday

Sunscreen Blocks Vitamin D Production by 95%

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