What is Vitamin D?

Vitamin D is mostly produced in the skin when sunlight touches our skin, and also when it’s absorbed from eating food (only a small percentage of vitamin D is absorbed by food) as part of a healthy balanced diet.The liver and kidneys convert the vitamin D into the active hormone called calcitriol, which is a steroid hormone that has long been known for its important role in regulating body levels of calcium and phosphorus, and in mineralization of bone. Active vitamin D helps to increase the amount of calcium the gut can absorb from food into the bloodstream and also prevents calcium. Vitamin D modifies the activity of bone cells and is important for the formation of new bone in children and adults.

And yes, we’ve all been told that vitamin D is essential to maintain strong healthy bones and that the best way to get vitamin D is through sunlight. We all get a little envious of those who live in sunny regions, but even though the sun can be abundant in some locations, it doesn’t mean that your skin will produce vitamin D in 80-degree temperature. In fact, some of the sunniest countries in the world such as Saudi Arabia have a vitamin D deficiency crisis.

Now many things need to happen, first and foremost you need to take your clothes off. Yes, that’s right bathing suit and all where the sun is penetrating directly to your skin, and the recommended amount is 30 minutes daily of direct sunlight. Wearing clothing in the sun will not help your skin to absorb Vitamin D, and neither will putting sunscreen on. But we won’t get into the sunscreen debate in this blog. Not everyone however will get the opportunity to live like they're vacationing in Mexico every day, so this is why we suggest looking into vitamin D 3 supplementation after determining what your vitamin D blood test levels are. According to Quest Diagnostics the recommend reference range is: 30-100 ng/mL. However, over 50% of the US population is less than the normal reference ranges.
 
Vitamin D and the Brain

There actually may be a link between Vitamin D deficiency and mood disorders - which lays between the neurotransmitters Serotonin. Our serotonin neurotransmitters are responsible for us having a sense of well being. In other words for us feeling calm, cool, and collected.

Let’s take a look at serotonin really quick. It’s the job of serotonin to help us feel good. The process of creating serotonin in the body is pretty interesting. It comes down to a chemical called tryptophan. Tryptophans are amino acids and those amino acids are derived from proteins that we consume. And when we consume those proteins we generally require carbohydrates to allow the tryptophan to enter into the brain. What researchers are now finding is that Vitamin D could be a critical component in that conversion process. So essentially you eat your protein, get your tryptophan, then vitamin D comes in and assists in the creation of serotonin. This is right at the very root of creating the neurotransmitters that help us feel good.

Researchers are continuing to back up the fact that everything seems to be connected in what’s called Monoamine. The Monoamine system is a group of neurotransmitters including serotonin, dopamine and, norepinephrine, all 3 neurotransmitters that truly regulate how the brain operates when it comes to feeling good.

Vitamin D 3

If we include Vitamin D 3 in our supplementation agenda daily, we could see a better creation of monoamine firing up on all cylinders in our body, hence making us feel great. There are multiple studies that back up the correlation between vitamin D deficiency and depression, vitamin D deficiency and anxiety, and even vitamin D deficiency and suicide, in addition to the link between vitamin D deficiency and the development of schizophrenia. This has been researched among patients of all ages around the globe. One meta-analysis reviewed 19 studies published between 1988 and 2013 and found a strong association between vitamin D deficiency and schizophrenia. Of the 2,804 participants from these studies, over 65% of the participants with schizophrenia were vitamin D deficient. Vitamin D deficient participants were 2.16 times more likely to have schizophrenia than vitamin D sufficient participants (Valipour, Saneei, & Esmaillzadeh, 2014).

Simply said, Vitamin D is no more than a prohormone that activates various functions that create other functions in the body to help you feel your best by increasing your energy and mood levels, helping your immune system become stronger, fighting off cardiovascular disease, and even helping to eliminate diabetes.

New Century Labs does not promote any vitamin companies. However, we do promote blood testing before any supplementation and showing your doctor your blood test results to ensure you get the proper dosage and then to blood test again several months later to track your levels. This can all be done by ordering your Vitamin D 25 Hydroxy blood test.

Check Your Vitamin D Levels