Vitamin D: Do You Get Enough?

Vitamin D: Do You Get Enough?

Vitamin D can be obtained through the sun, food and supplements, though not all these sources are reliable.

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin involved in bone development and maintenance because it helps the body absorb calcium. Vitamin D is also involved in muscle contraction, nerve signaling and immune function. How much vitamin D we need depends on lifestage.

Being adequate in vitamin D may not be top-of-mind for many people because of the well-known fact that our bodies can make vitamin D when our skin is exposed to the sun. However, it is not as well known that several factors such as geographic location, age, skin color, sunscreen use and more may impact the amount of vitamin D our skin makes. 

Food is another way to get vitamin D. There are very few natural sources besides egg yolks, cheese, salmon and tuna. Mushrooms are the only plant food that may be a natural source of vitamin D, depending on how they’re grown. Mushrooms exposed to a source of UV radiation, such as sunlight or a UV lamp, can generate vitamin D.

Most of the vitamin D in Americans’ way of eating comes from foods fortified with vitamin D during processing (dairy milk, some non-dairy milk, breakfast cereals, orange juice).

In addition to the sun and food sources, vitamin D can be obtained through supplements. Vitamin D supplements come as D2 or D3; both forms raise blood levels of vitamin D but D3 may be more effective. Speak to your healthcare provider before taking a vitamin D supplement.

Reference

National Institutes of Health: Office of Dietary Supplements. Vitamin D Fact Sheet for Consumers. March 2021. Available from: https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminD-Consumer/