healthy1

It seems you cannot watch the news, pick up a newspaper or read a magazine article these days and not hear about the wonders of Vitamin D. Vitamin D deficiency is being linked to everything from rickets in children, to certain cancers, to multiple sclerosis, and a host of other autoimmune diseases.

I am amazed at how this inexpensive, easily available, over-the-counter vitamin is so beneficial! Although I have taken many vitamins in my life, Vitamin D was never one of them. Did you know that 70% of the population is deficient in Vitamin D? One of the reasons is because we shun the sun, and when we are in the sun, we slather on SPF 15+ and never actually get any Vitamin D. We’ve been told to cover up - we did - and now, sadly, many of us are not reaping the benefits of the sun’s Vitamin D.

What I do now when I am in the sun is expose my skin without sunblock for 15 minutes or so, and then put on sunblock. I no longer use SPF 15 or higher, but SPF4. I read that SPF4 and above cancels out any Vitamin D benefits. Now I realize this is not the answer for everybody, but it is the answer for me. I do not live in a state that has year-round warm weather, in fact, just the opposite. I am only out in the sun for a few months out of the year.

I buy Vitamin D3 2,000 i.u. (which stands for international units, for those who do not know) and take one a day. Vitamin D3 is the actual “D” that our body produces. We simply cannot get enough from drinking milk or eating dairy products, which is why I supplement. And as I mentioned, I do not get nearly enough direct sun year-round to keep my levels normal.

I had my Vitamin D levels and my daughter’s levels tested this past summer. Guess what? Both of our levels were low…and this was during the summer! So I upped my dosage to 2,000 i.u.’s and I started my daughter on 1,000 i.u.’s. We will be tested again this winter; the results should be interesting.

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