It has been shown that people with dark skin need as much as six times the amount of vitamin D from the sun as compared to people with lighter skin. This is the reason why supplementation of vitamin D is important as people don’t have the time to stay out in the sun for such extended periods of time. Busy lifestyles and people being lazy can contribute why this may not occur.

Medication may hamper Vitamin D absorption into the body as it could slow down the metabolism of vitamin D and prevent it being absorbed. This could also lead to a risk of vitamin D deficiency.

For More Information please go to:

For more information:
The vitamin D deficiency Guide: http://www.vitaminddeficiencyguide.com/
Institute of Medicine of the National Academies (US): Dietary Reference Intakes for Calcium and Vitamin D
Cancer Council: http://www.cancer.org.au/cancersmartlifestyle/SunSmart/VitaminD.htm
Sun Smart app for iPhones andiPad: http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/sunsmart/id402707467?mt=8

Although the sun is our major natural source of vitamin D, you’ll also find it in foods
such as oily fish (salmon, sardines and swordfish) cod liver oil, fortified breakfast
cereals, eggs, butter, fortified milk, meat and UV-exposed mushrooms.

Getting all your vitamin D needs from foods is virtually impossible so a combination
of safe sun and vitamin D-containing foods is wise. Professor Mason advises, ‘Any
old sunlight won’t do. The energetic UVB-rays that make vitamin D are
around for most of the day in summer, but only around noon in winter,
particularly in southern parts of Australia.’

For most people exposing the arms and hands or equivalent area of skin on either
side of the peak UV periods (10am-3pm) for six to eight minutes on most days of the
week should be enough for the body to produce the vitamin D it requires.

Why supplements are important?

‘In winter, the sun exposure to arms or equivalent needs to be around noon and for
from seven minutes (Cairns) to 30-40mins (Hobart) most days, hands, or equivalent
area of skin exposed, spread over a week to maintain adequate vitamin D levels.’
‘The energetic UV that produces vitamin D is not around in early morning or late
afternoon. In summer, you risk too much UVA exposure for the amount of vitamin
D you make and in winter, in most of Australia you won’t make any vitamin D early
morning or late afternoon’ ends Professor Mason.

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People do not go out in the sun these days, especially older people. This is a high risk group of individuals. They don’t get the required amount of vitamin D as they are not exposed to sunlight long enough.

People who have darker skin are also vulnerable to have lower Vitamin D as the melanin does not absorb the vitamin D and cannot convert or converts less into vitamin D from the sunlight. People who cover themselves with a lot of clothing as well as obese people can suffer from vitamin D deficiency. Fat people absorb the Vitamin D into the fat cells but then the Vitamin D gets trapped in the fat cells and cannot escape out and do its job. The fat has to be broken down before the vitamins D can be of any help to the body. Loosing weight and weight management helps with vitamin D absorption. People who work long works in doors or play a lot of indoor sports or work at computers also suffer from lack of this vitamin.

People with osteoporosis and babies of mothers who are low in vitamin D especially if they are being breast-fed also fall into the high risk group for vitamin D deficiency.

The United States recently increased the recommended daily intake of vitamin D in order to reach optimum blood levels of the vitamin. Our last NHMRC recommendations were made around a decade ago and are currently being looked at and it looks like the recommended daily levels of vitamin D are set to rise.

According to Professor Mason, ‘Most people agree that the minimum acceptable vitamin D level is 50 nmol/L (this is what is recommended on the basis that at this level, bone and muscle function is close to normal and so is the handling of calcium by the body).

‘It is also the minimum level recommended by the AustNZ Bone and Mineral Society, the Endocrine Society of Australia, the Endocrine Society (USA) and the Institute of Medicine USA. Some groups recommend even higher levels, with some, though not conclusive evidence.’

It is known the low Vitamin D levels were seen in cold countries that experienced long winters and more dark days as seen in the extreme northern hemisphere. Sunshine or the lack of it was the reason why levels of Vitamin D were found to be low.

vitamin d deficiency signs and symptoms:

Interestingly it has been seen that even in Australia, a country full of sunshine, Vitamin D levels were alarmingly low. Except for pains, aches or tiredness the deficiency of Vitamin D is hard to track visibly. It is only when severe vitamin D deficiency is present will we notice people suffering from it. major symptoms are bone deformities and intense pain.

Immediate Past-President of the Australian and New Zealand Bone and Mineral Society, Professor Rebecca Mason estimates that around a third of the population is vitamin D deficiency.

‘From a large Australian study (AusDiab), over 40 per cent of females have low levels in summer-autumn and 27 per cent of males and this figure rises to 58 per cent of females not having enough vitamin D in winter-spring, and 35% males at that time,’ she says.

Are you getting enough Of D Vitamin?
There are a few important reasons why you should consider getting enough vitamin D:

The main reasons of low Vit D3:

• Healthy Bones –  The most obvious reason is that vitamin D is essential for bone health. Vit D aids in the

absorption of calcium and other minerals which are needed for building and maintaining strong bones and teeth in the human body.

How does low Vitamin D impact on our bodies:

Over time, low vitamin D levels can lead to  health conditions such as rickets in children and
osteomalacia (soft bones) in adults.  These low levels in the adult years also causes serious body problems by  increasing the
risk of osteoporosis in adults, a condition that’s characteristic by porous bones which in turn increases the risk of fractures and falls.

Another issue of low Vitamin D is seen in a healthy immune system – low blood levels of vitamin D have been linked with a
wide range of health problems including polycystic ovary disease, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, muscle weakness, memory loss and some cancers.

Skin health  And Vitamin D3 – while it is well known that too much sun exposure can trigger skin cancer, vitamin D and related compounds in skin may actually protect against damage from UV radiation according to Professor Rebecca Mason from the University of Sydney’s current research. This is because vitamin D compounds in skin reduce DNA damage after UV exposure.

Vitamin D Facts

By covering ourselves with lotions or screens, hats or caps, we have literally kept our body away from sunlight. The sun is the main source of the bone building vitamin D. Unfortunately many people especially in the Western World such as Canada, Australia, USA and England do not get sizable amounts of this vital nutrient. To get sizable amounts of Vitamin D we just need 20 minutes of sunlight a day. Darker skin people need more exposure as their skins do not absorb sunlight as readily as fairer skin people.

Now Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin. In order words when absorbed it gets stored in our body fat cells. The uniqueness of vitamin D is that it cant be obtained from our fruits and vegetables. The vitamin D is produced when the sun rays or sunshine reacts with fatty substances in our skin surfaces. The more skin exposed to the sun the more vitamin D is absorbed. This form of vitamin D which the body forms is now stored in the body for future use. Alarmingly 90% of the body’s vitamin D3 is produced this way and the remaining comes from food sources. Vitamin D Supplements.

To start off, you should first know what multivitamins are. Multivitamins can be in the form of capsule, liquid or pill. It contains most of the essential vitamins and minerals that the body needs in order to function properly. Most of the time, it is taken on a daily basis. The body needs vitamin supplements in the form of multivitamins because not all essentials vitamins and nutrients can be absorbed by the body if you only rely on your daily diet.

The vitamins and minerals found in fruits, vegetables and meat nowadays are depleted due to farming practices such as the addition of pesticides and fertilizers. Also, processed foods have diminished vitamins and minerals so you cannot really count on it to give you the nutrients your body needs.

Most of the vitamins out in the market today are from synthetic ingredients. These types of vitamins are usually the affordable ones. It is made in the laboratory and the chemicals are processed in order to get the vitamins needed by the body. It has no co-factors that aids in the absorption of the vitamins by the body so it is actually a hit and miss process. This means that of you are taking in synthetic multivitamins, you need more dosage of it in order to be sure that your body absorbs enough.

An all natural multivitamin came from plant sources and it is readily absorbed by the body. You can say that it is more effective than the synthetic ones. It also has standardized concentration of minerals due to the hydroponic process involved.

Each type of vitamin B and acid has its own function in the human system. If you put all the B complex multivitamin altogether, each one helps the other in reaching its desired effect. The daily diet of each person should include the recommended amount of vitamin B complex so the body can function properly. If you lack this in your diet, consider taking in multivitamin B complex.

Most of the multivitamins found in the market today contain B complex vitamins and other essential vitamins and minerals such as Vitamin A, C and E among many others. A lot of people, even the experts, agree that multivitamins are better compared to individual vitamins because the former is already complete with all the nutrients that the body requires. It is more practical and economical as well.

Vitamin B complex helps in maintaining the health and well being of the skin, hair and nails. Since these parts of the body continuously grow and regenerate, extra help is needed in maintaining its good health. The deficiency of B complex vitamins can lead to dermatitis, acne, rashes, wrinkles, dry skin, falling hair and weak nails.

Aside from keeping the skin, nails and hair healthy, B complex vitamins also enhance the nervous system as well as the immune function. It is able to promote cell growth and maintain muscle tone. A good dose of B complex vitamins daily will prevent anemia, depression and fatigue.

The bad news is that most of the vitamins and minerals are lost in fruits and vegetables due to the way it is grown. Pesticides and fertilizers remove most of the vitamins and minerals. So even if you intake sufficient amount of this food, you will not get the recommended dietary allowance for each vitamin that is needed by the body. The case is more so heightened for people who are not used in eating fruits and veggies.

So what can you do in order to stay fit and healthy without having to eat much fruits and vegetables? Thanks to technology, the experts already found a way to harness vitamins and minerals and store it in capsule or liquid form. There are now vitamins for sale in every health stores in your area. Look over the internet and you will surely find vitamins for bones, vitamins for joints, vitamins for arthritis and vitamins for lungs among many other options.

Choosing the brand of vitamins for sale can be tricky. You should go for the one that is already trusted in the industry to ensure that you are really getting all the vitamins you need and not just some chemicals that will harm, instead of cure the body. If you are in doubt, you can always consult your doctor.

If you are on the lookout for vitamins for nails, vitamins for psoriasis, Vitamins for fibromyalgia or vitamins for thyroid, you should so your research online. Most of the vitamins for sale in health stores are already available online. With online shopping, you do not have to leave the house to get your daily dose of vitamins.

You can also use Vitamin C dosage on your skin. It can give you sunscreen protection thereby protecting your skin from the harmful glare of UV rays. You can also apply this vitamin to your wounds in order to hasten the healing process. Citrus juices are rich in vitamin C benefits and you can use these juices to cool the body and even as natural skin bleach. The best Vitamin C is included in most skin care products due to its nourishing effect on the skin.

If you lack Vitamin C in the body, you are prone to getting the disease known as scurvy. This vitamin is the only remedy for such disease. The symptoms of people with scurvy are muscle weakness, tiredness, muscle aches, bleeding gums and rashes.

Vitamin C is also essential for cancer prevention. It keeps the cells in the body healthy. It has antioxidants that helps maintain the cholesterol level in the body at the normal level. This in turn will help individuals reduce the risk of heart problems especially to those who already have a family history of such illness.

In order to fight off cataract, the intake of Vitamin C is vital. This vitamin takes good care of the eyes by safeguarding it; preventing it from blurring. It also controls the blood sugar level of the body in order to prevent diabetes. All of these are the benefits of the intake of Vitamin C. You can get it from citrus fruits or you can also get it through the intake of vitamin supplements.