Bring that all-important sunshine into your life
View(s):By Marie Bartholomeusz
Vitamin D, also known as the sunshine vitamin is a fat-soluble vitamin that has a structure similar to a hormone. Vitamin D deficiency is now considered to be a major health issue and recent research suggests that up to 50% of adults and children around the world are vitamin D deficient.
So who is at risk? People who are housebound, disabled, older people living in residential care, dark skinned people, those who dress modestly and those who regularly avoid sun exposure or work indoors are all at risk of developing vitamin D deficiency. Unlike most other nutrients that we obtain from food, vitamin D is one contained only in a few foods – its highest concentration found in fatty fish such as tuna, mackerel, salmon and some mushrooms.
Exposure to the sun can produce a large dose of vitamin D but only on the condition that it is sensible sun exposure on bare skin for 10-15 minutes, 2-3 times per week allowing the body’s ability to produce sufficient vitamin D. The darker the skin, the longer the sun exposure required. The role of vitamin D is to keep calcium and phosphate levels in balance for healthy bones and muscle function. Serious vitamin D deficiency causes impaired bone mineralisation, resulting in rickets in children, and osteomalacia. Osteomalacia refers to a softening of the bones, often caused by a vitamin D deficiency. Soft bones are more likely to bow and fracture than are harder, healthy bones. (Osteomalacia is not the same as osteoporosis. Osteomalacia occurs when there is a defect in the bone-building process, while osteoporosis develops due to a weakening of previously constructed bone).
Scientists have discovered that vitamin D does not only play a role in the development of bones and calcium absorption, it also has a significant impact on the immune system, suggesting a protective effect against multiple diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, multiple sclerosis and depression.There is a significant amount of research about vitamin D and depression, particularly in older people – the reason being older people don’t go outside often enough for sun exposure, and they are unable to transform vitamin D in their skin as well as younger people.
A recent study in Australia by the Perth based Telethon Kids Institute also found a clear association between vitamin D deficiency in young children and increased risk of asthma, wheezing, and eczema. The study’s lead researcher cited the importance of vitamin D for immune function stating that the first two years of childhood is a critical period for allergies and chest infections that can grow into something bigger, but sufficient vitamin D can help prevent the development of asthma. However, researchers are yet to conclude how much vitamin D children should be getting. Although, vitamin D supplements are readily available, it is suggested that parents ensure children spend sufficient time in the sun whilst following sun safe guidelines.
It is important to focus on obtaining your daily vitamin D requirements from sunlight and food, and any supplement following medical advice. It is not the individual vitamin alone that make certain foods an important part of the diet, but the synergy of the nutrients working together allowing for greater absorption.