Vitamin D- An Important Body Element

Vitamin D

 Vitamin D hormonal deficiency and its related problems are increasing rapidly specially in urban areas. Reason, less sunlight exposure as people do not often go out in the open.  Due to this, our body experiences deficiency of vitamin D and its related problems. And the bigger problems is that the maximum people are not aware of this fact.

What is Vitamin D?

Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin that is naturally present in very few foods. It is produced in human body, when the skin is exposed to sunlight. Some of the food having vitamin D are cod liver oil, tuna fish, liver, milk, yogurt.

Benefits of Vitamin D

Vitamin D promotes Calcium absorption in the guts and helps in normal mineralization of the bone. It is also needed for bone growth. Without sufficient vitamin D, bones can become thin and brittle. Vitamin D sufficiency prevents rickets  in children and osteomalacia in adults. Together with calcium, Vitamin D also helps elderly people from osteoporosis.

Vitamin D has many other roles to play in proper body functioning.  It is required for bones, muscle and ligaments strength. It also helps in body immune functioning, reduction of inflammation and infection, modulation of cell growth, helps in controlling neuro-muscular health an co-ordination. 

It lower down the risk of diseases in our vital body organs like liver, kidney, lungs and heart. Laboratory evidences suggest vitamin D plays an important role in prevention of colon, prostrate, and breast cancer.

Vitamin D healthy levels in our body

A healthy person should have 50ng/mL or more level of vitamin D in the body. Though, 20 to 50 ng/mL range is considered as normal but doctors recommends to maintaing it at 50 ng/mL or above for better health results. Physician may prescribe you vitamin D supplements if its level is below 25ng/mL. 

Vitamin D Deficiency

Vitamin D deficiency is usually the result of dietary inadequacy, impaired absorption and use, increased requirement, or increased excretion. Rickets and osteomalacia are the classical vitamin D deficiency diseases. 

In Children, its deficiency causes rickets which is characterized by a failure of bone tissue to properly mineralize, resulting in soft bones and skeletal deformities.

In Adults, Vitamin D deficiency can lead to osteomalacia and osteoporosis resulting in weak and hollow bones, and pain and weakness  in joints and muscles. Its deficiency may also caused  pain in lower back region and below the waist region specially in the calf muscles. One may also experience tiredness and restlessness, hair loss, reduced immunity, increase in infertility and irregular menstrual cycles.

Vitamin D Test and Treatment

25-Hydroxy Vitamin D test can be done through blood samples for determining of vitamin D levels in our body. 

In case of its deficiency, Physician may  recommend to take Vitamin D supplements. Also one should try to increase sunlight exposure in a day.  Do exercises in open sunlight.

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