Vitamin D3 - CalComp Nutrition

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Vitamin D3
Robert Barefoot

VITAMIN D3

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Vitamin D3 Ingredients

High stress may increase the need for vitamin D or U V-B sunlight and calcium.

Strong evidence tells us that the combination of vitamin D and calcium supplements can be quite helpful for preventing and treating osteoporosis. Other potential uses of vitamin D have little supporting evidence.

Requirements/Sources
As with vitamin A, dosages of vitamin D are often expressed in terms of international units (IU) rather than milligrams.
The official U.S. and Canadian recommendations for daily intake of vitamin D are as follows:

However, growing evidence suggests that these recommendations may be too low. For example, a study of veiled Islamic women living in Denmark found that 600 IU of vitamin D daily was insufficient to raise vitamin D levels in the blood to normal levels.1 The authors of this study recommend that sun-deprived individuals should receive 1,000 IU of vitamin D daily. However, this idea has not been universally accepted.

There is very little vitamin D found naturally in the foods we eat (the best sources are coldwater fish). In many countries, vitamin D is added to milk and other foods like breakfast cereals and margarine, contributing to our daily intake.

By far the best source of vitamin D is sunlight. However, current recommendations which stress sun avoidance and the use of sunblock may have the unintended effect of increasing the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency. Severe vitamin D deficiency was common in England in the 1800s due to coal smoke obscuring the sun. During that time, cod liver oil, which is high in vitamin D, became popular as a supplement for children to help prevent rickets. (Rickets is a disease caused by vitamin D deficiency in which developing bones soften and curve because they aren't receiving enough calcium.)

Infants 0–12 months, 200 IU (5 mcg)
Males and females 1–50 years, 200 IU (5 mcg)
51–70 years, 400 IU (10 mcg)
71 years and older, 600 IU (15 mcg)
Pregnant women, 200 IU (5 mcg)
Nursing women, 200 IU (5 mcg)

Vitamin D deficiency is known to occur today in the elderly (who often receive less sun exposure) as well as in people who live in northern latitudes and don't drink vitamin D–enriched milk.5,7 The consequences of this deficiency may be increased risk of hypertension, osteoporosis, and several forms of cancer.

Vitamin D, calciferol, is a fat-soluble vitamin. It is found in food, but also can be made in your body after exposure to ultraviolet rays from the sun (1,2). Vitamin D exists in several forms, each with a different activity. Some forms are relatively inactive in the body, and have limited ability to function as a vitamin. The liver and kidney help convert vitamin D to its active hormone form. (3).

The major biologic function of vitamin D is to maintain normal blood levels of calcium and phosphorus (4). Vitamin D aids in the absorption of calcium, helping to form and maintain strong bones. It promotes bone mineralization in concert with a number of other vitamins, minerals, and hormones. Without vitamin D, bones can become thin, brittle, soft, or misshapen. Vitamin D prevents rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults, which are skeletal diseases that result in defects that weaken bones (5,6).

Vitamin D: What is it?

Food sources
Fortified foods are the major dietary sources of vitamin D (4). Prior to the fortification of milk products in the 1930s, rickets (a bone disease seen in children) was a major public health problem in the United States. Milk in the United States is fortified with 10 micrograms (400 IU) of vitamin D per quart , and rickets is now uncommon in the US (7).

One cup of vitamin D fortified milk supplies about one-fourth of the estimated daily need for this vitamin for adults. Although milk is fortified with vitamin D, dairy products made from milk such as cheese, yogurt, and ice cream are generally not fortified with vitamin D. Only a few foods naturally contain significant amounts of vitamin D, including fatty fish and fish oils (4). The table of selected food sources of vitamin D suggests dietary sources of vitamin D.

Exposure to sunlight
Exposure to sunlight is an important source of vitamin D. Ultraviolet (UV) rays from sunlight trigger vitamin D synthesis in the skin (7,8). Season, latitude, time of day, cloud cover, smog, and suncreens affect UV ray exposure (8). For example, in Boston the average amount of sunlight is insufficient to produce significant vitamin D synthesis in the skin from November through February. Sunscreens with a sun protection factor of 8 or greater will block UV rays that produce vitamin D, but it is still important to routinely use sunscreen whenever sun exposure is longer than 10 to 15 minutes. It is especially important for individuals with limited sun exposure to include good sources of vitamin D in their diet.

What are the sources of vitamin D?

When can vitamin D deficiency occur?

A deficiency of vitamin D can occur when dietary intake of vitamin D is inadequate, when there is limited exposure to sunlight, when the kidney cannot convert vitamin D to its active form, or when someone cannot adequately absorb vitamin D from the gastrointestinal tract (7).

The classic vitamin D deficiency diseases are rickets and osteomalacia. In children, vitamin D deficiency causes rickets, which results in skeletal deformities. In adults, vitamin D deficiency can lead to osteomalacia, which results in muscular weakness in addition to weak bones (5,6,7).

Older Americans (greater than age 50) are thought to have a higher risk of developing vitamin D deficiency(9). The ability of skin to convert vitamin D to its active form decreases as we age (4, 10-12). The kidneys, which help convert vitamin D to its active form, sometimes do not work as well when people age. Therefore, some older Americans may need vitamin D from a supplement.

It is important for individuals with limited sun exposure to include good sources of vitamin D in their diets (8, 13-15). Homebound individuals, people living in northern latitudes such as in New England and Alaska, women who cover their body for religious reasons, and individuals working in occupations that prevent exposure to sunlight are at risk of a vitamin D deficiency. If these individuals are unable to meet their daily dietary need for vitamin D, they may need a supplement of vitamin D.

Individuals who have reduced ability to absorb dietary fat (fat malabsorption) may need extra vitamin D because it is a fat soluble vitamin. Some causes of fat malabsorption are pancreatic enzyme deficiency, Crohn’s disease, cystic fibrosis, sprue, liver disease, surgical removal of part or all of the stomach, and small bowel disease (6). Symptoms of fat malabsorption include diarrhea and greasy stools (16).

Vitamin D supplements are often recommended for exclusively breast-fed infants because human milk may not contain adequate vitamin D (17-20). The Institute of Medicine states that "With habitual small doses of sunshine breast- or formula-fed infants do not require supplemental vitamin D." Mothers of infants who are exclusively breastfed and have a limited sun exposure should consult with a pediatrician on this issue. Since infant formulas are routinely fortified with vitamin D, formula fed infants usually have adequate dietary intake of vitamin D.

Who may need extra vitamin D to prevent a deficiency?

Vitamin D and cancer

Laboratory, animal, and epidemiologic evidence suggest that vitamin D may be protective against some cancers. Some dietary surveys have associated increased intake of dairy foods with decreased incidence of colon cancer (25-27). Another dietary survey associated a higher calcium and vitamin D intake with a lower incidence of colon cancer (28). Well-designed clinical trials need to be conducted to determine whether vitamin D deficiency increases cancer risk, or if an increased intake of vitamin D is protective against some cancers. Until such trials are conducted, it is premature to advise anyone to take vitamin D supplements to prevent cancer.

Vitamin D and steroids

Corticosteroid medications are often prescribed to reduce inflammation from a variety of medical problems. These medicines may be essential for a person’s medical treatment, but they have potential side effects, including decreased calcium absorption (29,30). There is some evidence that steroids may also impair vitamin D metabolism, further contributing to the loss of bone and development of osteoporosis associated with steroid medications (30). For these reasons, individuals on chronic steroid therapy should consult with their physician or registered dietitian about the need to increase vitamin D intake through diet and/or dietary supplements.

Vitamin D and Alzheimer’s Disease

Adults with Alzheimer’s disease have increased risk of hip fractures (31). This may be because many Alzheimer’s patients are homebound, and frequently sunlight deprived. Alzheimer’s disease is more prevalent in older populations, so the fact that the ability of skin to convert vitamin D to its active form decreases as we age also may contribute to increased risk of hip fractures in this group (4,10-12). One study of women with Alzheimer’s disease found that decreased bone mineral density was associated with a low intake of vitamin D and inadequate sunlight exposure (32). Physicians evaluate the need for vitamin D supplementation as part of an overall treatment plan for adults with Alzheimer’s disease.

As the 2000 Dietary Guidelines for Americans state,
"Different foods contain different nutrients. No single food can supply all the nutrients in the amounts you need"

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VITAMIN D3

Vitamin D is both a vitamin and a hormone. It's a vitamin because your body cannot absorb calcium without it; it's a hormone because your body manufactures it in response to your skin's exposure to sunlight.

A Special Note to CalComp Nutrition Customers
Dietary supplements are not to be used to prevent or treat or cure any disease. The Statements in this website have not been evaluated by the FDA. Any information provided on this web site is not a substitute for the advice of a licensed medical practitioner. Individuals are advised not to self-medicate in the presence of significant illness. Ingredients in supplements are not drugs and may not be foods. CalComp Nutrition does not advise administration of supplements to infants or children and no supplements should be taken in pregnancy without professional advice.

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